Quintessence
by SpontaneousCombustion
Summary: Finally, an update! With Lock back on their side, Jack is determined to return his town back to the way it was- starting with Doctor Finklestein! But even if they manage to get inside, how are they going to get past their former witchy ally?
1. Chapter 1

SC: Okay, since I don't have any inspiration for my other stories, I'm going to try TNBC again. Mainly because whenever I have writer's block for everything else, I can usually write this. So, here's the first chapter of Quintessence!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas or any of its characters, just the ones I made up.

--

Chapter 1

Halloween

_My name is Edward Jason Skellington, but everyone just calls me Ed. Or Eddy, but that's only my grandma. I'm eight years old, my birthday is May thirteenth, I'm a middle triplet, and the second youngest child in my family. Who are completely insane. But, you know, that's a good thing where we live._

_My dad is Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, the Master of fright, etc., etc. He's abnormally tall, likes to wear his pinstripe suits- a lot-, and has no skin. Or muscles. He's a skeleton, what do you expect? My mom, Sally, is a rag doll. Grandpa made her, but then she fell in love with dad, so he let her go and made Grandma Jewel. _

_My older brother Johnny is the oldest of us triplets. He looks a lot more like dad than me or Mercy do. He's all bones, except for the left half of his chest and his arm. Johnny's kinda crazy sometimes, and he likes to be in charge ALL the time. He also has the ability to see what happened in the past if he focuses hard enough while he's touching a person, like how they died, or something like that. For some reason, dad won't let him do it to anyone in the family. Don't see why, but…_

_Then there's me. Most of the time, I think that I'm the only sane person in the family. I still think __I__ was born oldest, because Johnny certainly doesn't act like it. I look more like mom does, though I do have a quite skeletal right arm. I have dark red hair that I really need to cut; it's getting to the point where even Lock is calling it shaggy, which is ridiculous when you look at his hair. When I was about five, I found out that I could do something that Grandpa called 'scrying.' If I look into a mirror, or anything that has a reflective surface (I know; I've practiced), I can see what's going on somewhere else in Halloween Town. But it's pretty random, and I can't really focus it. Together, me and Johnny can have these "group" premonitions like mom has, but it doesn't work when we're on our own._

_Mercy is our little sister. She used to be a pretty normal kid- you know, other than being dead- but lately, she's gotten really quiet and withdrawn. Like me, she's got mom's red hair, but she doesn't have any bone parts like my and Johnny do; Mercy's all rag doll. She really likes to paint, and she's really good for someone who's only eight, but she hasn't even been doing that lately. I don't think she's been too happy about not having and clairvoyant abilities like me and Johnny, and to tell the truth, I think she's a little jealous of our big sister Aubrey._

_Speaking of Aubrey, I haven't heard anything from her yet tod-_

--

Ed winced, dropping his pen, as there was a sound like a crash from downstairs, almost covered by a yell of 'BIRTHDAY TACKLE!' He sighed and picked his pen back up.

--

_-today, which is- sorry, WAS- odd because it's Halloween, which means that it's Aubrey's twenty-seventh birthday… and deathday, for that matter. That also means that the crash I just heard from downstairs was Lock, Shock, and Barrel tackling her. It's some weird tradition they have._

_I've learned not to question them. But anyway, back to Aubrey._

_Aubrey's not really my sister, not by blood anyway. If I had blood, I mean. Apparently, she knew dad back when she was alive somehow, and after she died, mom and dad adopted her. Something about a key… I never really got it. Anyway, she's the next heir to the throne, but that's going to take a while. Halloween Town usually has the same ruler for centuries, and dad isn't that old compared to some of the other kings. But she's a really cool big sister anyway. Lately, she's been letting her white hair grow out so now it's down to her waist. She's got two sets of these creepy 'fallen angel' wings that she can make disappear when she needs to; which means that she has to be difficult and hardly ever does. She's got really bright red eyes, and white skin- like everyone else in Halloween Town. I mean, come on, we're dead. That means no pulse, and no blood circulation-._

_Lock is Aubrey's boyfriend. He's pretty cool, if not a little extreme with the pranks he pulls sometimes. He's got BRIGHT red hair, like inhumanly so, that he keeps pretty short and spikes up. He's also got this little rattail ponytail, hence my earlier comment about him judging __my__ hair. Aubrey says that Lock keeps his hair short to show off the horns that grew in back when they were teenagers. She also likes the ponytail, 'cause she uses it to yank him around like it's a leash or something. Lock's also a pyromancer. Which means that he likes to set things on fire, or that's what Shock says._

_Shock is Aubrey's best friend. She's also like the best witch in town, except for Hazel and Zoë, but that's just because they're the head of the witches council and still have, like, a millennium on her. She's got pale skin like everyone else, but it's a pale green instead of just white or white-blue, and the wildest black hair I've ever seen. She's also dating Barrel._

_Barrel is the only white mage Halloween Town's ever had since the seventeenth century, when all the witches- good and bad- were being hunted down and killed. He's also one of the best at hand to hand combat, as has been proven when he and Lock fight. He's got the weirdest hair color too; it's like someone mixed a yellow and green highlighter. Barrel keeps his hair slicked back most of the time, but it's shaggier than mine is when he doesn't. Longer too; it goes down to his shoulders._

--

Ed looked up as there was a quiet knock on his door. "Who is it?"

The door creaked open and he turned to see Mercy standing in his doorway. "Mom wanted me to tell you breakfast is ready." She said in a quiet, whispery voice.

He nodded. "'Kay, thanks Mercy. Be down in a sec." She nodded and walked out. Ed closed his journal and put it in his top desk drawer, locking it with the key around his neck.

--

"Pancakes!" Johnny cried joyously as Sally set his plate down in front of him.

"Does Aubrey ever have anything else?" Shock asked, grabbing the syrup before Lock could. He glared at her.

"May all your bacon be burnt." He muttered.

Aubrey laughed, tugging on Lock's ponytail lightly. "What can I say? I love mom's pancakes."

Ed came rushing into the room and grabbed an empty chair, plopping down between Barrel and Lock. "Aubrey, you aren't being very original." He commented, cutting a forkful of his breakfast and popping it in his mouth.

She shrugged. "I don't have to be. It is my birthday, therefore, we have pancakes. Deal."

Jack sent her a look. "Aubrey, be nice."

The white-haired girl sent him a sheepish smile. "Sorry dad. Hey, we're still heading to Paris tonight, right? Or did we change it back to London?"

"Paris." Jack confirmed with a nod. "It's going to be raining in London."

Aubrey scrunched her nose. "Eeuch. I hate rain. I can't fly with wet wings. And I was going to get really mad if all that French I've been learning was for nothing."

"Well, not for _nothing_." Lock said, grinning over at her. She rolled her eyes and elbowed him.

Aubrey leant forward and looked over at Shock and Barrel. "You guys are coming too, right?"

Barrel grinned over at Shock. "_Mais bien sûr._"

"Translation: duh.** (actually, it translates to 'but of course.')**" Shock said, giving her a "you're an idiot" look.

A piece of bacon was promptly tossed at the witch's head. "You don't have to be rude about it, I was just asking."

Ed rolled his eyes as they continued to talk about it. He, Johnny, Ed, and Mercy were too young to go to Living World on Halloween unaccompanied; Jack was going to be busy doing his job as Pumpkin King- a.k.a scaring the shit out of some living people- and Sally was going to be busy helping, so they were going to stay with Dr. Finklestein this year. Tuning out the conversation, he let his eyes drift over the table, where they fell on Mercy.

The young girl was glaring down at her food, her fist tight around her fork. Glancing slightly over, **(a/n: yes, I know. They have no eyes. Ed can just tell, okay?)** her eyes **(not a word out of any of you!)** fell on the glass of juice beside her plate. Her gaze traveled from the glass to Aubrey, whom she was sitting next to, several times before her hand 'accidentally' tipped the glass, spilling the juice out onto the table… and all over Aubrey's lap.

Letting out a surprised yell, Aubrey jumped up. "Sorry!" Mercy apologized immediately.

Aubrey shook her head, smiling over at her. "It's alright, Mercy. It was just an accident, right?"

For a second, Ed could've sworn he saw Mercy glare at Aubrey, but it passed as quickly as he thought it came, and she just nodded. "Besides, no harm done, it was just really cold." She scratched the back of her head. "Guess I'll go get dressed early."

"Hold on, Aubrey, I can get it." Barrel stopped her. "_Naelc._" The stains disappeared off of the table and Aubrey's pajama pants.

"Nice, Barrel." Aubrey admonished, sitting back down.

"So THAT'S how you keep your room so clean!" Lock accused. "I knew you didn't clean it all up yourself." Barrel just grinned at him.

-_Halloween Night_-

"See you later, guys!" Aubrey called over her shoulder as she, Lock, Shock, and Barrel ran off.

Sally kissed each of the triplets on the cheek. "Behave for your grandpa."

"Yes ma'am." Johnny and Ed said with a decidedly bored tone. Mercy nodded, watching as Jack and Sally walked off toward the graveyard.

Dr. Finklestein whirred past them and shut the door. "Well, what should we do tonight?"

"I'm going to go help grandma." Ed said, running off toward the kitchen.

Johnny grinned at the doctor hopefully. "Can I help in the lab?"

"Of course, my boy." Dr. Finklestein turned his head toward Mercy. "What about you, my dear? Care to join us?"

Mercy shook her head. "I'll go explore." She said quietly, turning and going outside.

--

Explore. Right. Ha! I know my way around grandpa's lab so well I could make it around with my eyes closed. Figuratively speaking.

I sat down on a crooked step on the porch, kicking at a frog that was trying to sneak up the stairs. It let out a startled croak and jumped back, falling down the steps. My eyes widened, thinking I'd hurt it, but then I glared when it flipped itself over and hopped back out to the acid works. "Stupid frog." I muttered, resting my cheek against a fist.

Of course, it wasn't really the frog I was mad at. It just happened to be a nearby way to take out frustration. This frustration was stemmed from the fact that my artistic muse seemed to have abandoned me. Normally, I painted whenever I was mad. Now I couldn't even do that!

It was Aubrey's fault for being so… so… _perfect_ all the time. She always gets all of the attention, what with her being the 'Pumpkin Princess' and all. She doesn't even like the name!

With a huff, I kicked a random bolt down the steps and went back inside. I could hear Ed and grandma in the kitchen, and I could hear Johnny and grandpa in the lab. I didn't want to be with any of them right now. So, I had everything between the floor and the elevator to the lab to be alone in. I started up the stairs.

--

I didn't realize how hard it was to entertain yourself when you were bored out of your mind. I'd already been to mom's old room, Igor's room (the little hunchback was out in the junkyard somewhere, I guess.), and a bunch of storage rooms. Nowhere I hadn't already been before, and nothing I hadn't seen. Sighing, I trudged up the next flight of stairs, to be face with the elevator to grandpa's lab. I frowned. Explosions and other such noises were coming from upstairs, and I really didn't feel like finding out what they were being made from. I turned slightly, and that's when I noticed the other door, at the end of the floor.

Now, I had never seen this door before. Or, if I had, I certainly hadn't noticed. Glancing at the still raised elevator, then over the banister to make sure that no one was coming, I moved down the hall swiftly, tugging on the door.

It didn't budge.

I was more curious than ever now. Tugging harder, the door slid open with a loud screech. I froze, looking both at the elevator and downstairs. Still no sign of movement whatsoever, so I attempted to squeeze through the opening in the door. I heard something tear, and once I was through, I looked down to see that my arm was falling halfway off. Sighing, I pulled a needle out of my hair (they actually make very good bobby pins) and began sewing my almost detached limb back on. Then I looked up, and my mouth dropped, along with the needle. I had somehow stumbled upon this huge library that grandpa had obviously been accumulating since he died.

"What is all of this?" I whispered, looking over the rows of books. My fingers skimmed along the titles; most of which were in foreign languages that I couldn't read; some I didn't even recognize.

"Mercy?" I jolted, then realized that it was just grandma calling me from downstairs. I slipped back out the door and peered over the railing, making sure to hide my still half-falling-off arm.

"Yes?"

She looked up at me. "Eddy and I," I could almost see Ed cringe at the nickname, "are making gingersnaps. Would you like to help?"

I paused, glancing over my shoulder. "Yeah, sure. Be down in a sec." She smiled and walked back into the kitchen. I shoved the door shut (no noise this time, thank goodness) and did a hasty stitch up job on my arm before running downstairs.

-_Later that night, after the Award's Ceremony…_-

"Lock, c'mon, come play with us!" Johnny pleaded, pulling on said devil-horned corpse's hand.

"Please?" Ed asked, doing much the same with the other hand.

Lock smirked down at them. "Later, I promise. Right now…" He looked over the boys' heads to see Aubrey standing on the other side of the square, talking to Shock and Sandy, who had snuck out of the underworld to come and visit Aubrey on her birthday.

Johnny and Ed looked at each other, shaking their heads. "Right now you want to go and make kissy faces at Aubrey." Johnny said, sticking out his tongue.

Lock smacked the back of his head lightly. "You won't be thinking like that when you get a girlfriend, trust me."

Ed grinned sneakily up at Lock. "So, you gonna ask her?"

Lock stared down at him, obviously trying not to look surprised. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Johnny and Ed grinned at each other before singing, "Dun, dun, du-dun, dun, dun, du-dun…"

Lock's face flushed bright red and he clapped a hand over each of their mouths. "How did you two find out?" He hissed.

Ed pulled his hand away. "It wasn't hard. I saw you shove the box in your pocket before you guys left."

"Plus," Johnny said, "It's Halloween, a.k.a Aubrey's favorite holiday and her birthday. I'm surprised no one ELSE has figured it out yet."

Lock sighed, knowing the 'we have blackmail on you' tone when he heard it. He practically invented it. "Okay, what do you want?"

Johnny grinned, tapping his chin. "Well…"

Ed clapped a hand over his brother's mouth this time. "Just go ask her."

Lock laughed. "Deal. Oh, and the candy's in my room." Both boys grinned widely and ran off toward Skellington Manor. Lock shook his head and walked over to the girls. He wrapped his arms around Aubrey's waist from behind her, resting his chin on her shoulder. "Come dance with me."

Aubrey looked back at him. "Is that an order or a request?" Lock just rolled his eyes and spun her around to face him, pulling her over to where the band was playing.

The sudden change in music didn't go unnoticed by anyone, especially not the Pumpkin King. Sally put a hand on his arm, smiling. "Jack, look." She whispered, pointing over to Lock and Aubrey. Jack followed his wife's finger. He smiled as he watched the two twirl around the small, designated 'dance floor'.

The royal couple weren't the only ones watching. "Would you look at that?"

"Stunning."

"Such a perfect pair." Came the murmurs from the on looking crowd.

Begrudgingly, Mercy had to admit she agreed with them. Lock and Aubrey just… _fit_ together. Not once- ONCE- had they ever practiced dancing together, but it flowed seamlessly, like they had rehearsed for hours and hours. Mercy found it ironic- considering the whole angel/devil thing- how perfect the two of them were together.

But that didn't mean she had to like it. Though even she had to admit that the way the two of them moved was stunning and completely enthralling- no one could pull their eyes away.

The music stopped before they did, though they quickly did once they realized the music was no longer playing, blushing slightly as they stepped apart, though Lock hammed it up and bowed, still holding Aubrey's hand. He pulled her toward the graveyard, the two of them easily maneuvering through the crowd and their complements.

"Lock, what are we doing out here?" Aubrey asked as her boyfriend led her through the gravestones.

"I told you, it's a surprise." He said, smiling back at her over his shoulder. He kicked the pumpkin at the base of Spiral Hill, making it uncurl and reveal the shortcut to the Hinterlands.

"Alright." Lock said, stopping suddenly. "We're here."

Aubrey looked around. All she saw were the dead Hinterland trees. "Lock, where are we?"

He smirked over at her. "What, you don't recognize it?" Aubrey began to shake her head, then looked around again. The place did seem oddly familiar. The trees seemed to be standing in a ring around the clearing, and there were crows circling overhead.

Her eyes widened. "This is…"

"Where the door was." Lock confirmed. "The first place I ever met you. Remember?"

She laughed. "How could I forget that? You, Shock, and Barrel tried to kidnap me to feed to Oogie."

Lock chuckled slightly. "Yeah. I ever apologize for that?"

"Not really, but you made up for it by saving my life. Three times." Aubrey frowned, giving Lock a confused look. "Lock, why are we out here? Why are you bringing all this up?"

Lock took his hand out of Aubrey's, slipping it in his pocket. "I just thought that this would be the best place to ask you."

If anything, Aubrey got more confused. "Ask me? Lock, ask me…" She stopped, her eyes widening in realization as they flicked between Lock's face and the hand he had hidden in his pocket. "Lock?"

Lock closed his eyes and took a deep breath, pulling his hand out of his pocket. With his free hand, he took Aubrey's wrist and placed a small, red velvet box in her hand. "Open your present." He said quietly.

Aubrey looked down at the box in her hand, forgetting how to breathe for several moments. Not that she needed it, but still. Her hands were shaking as she opened the lid of the box, and she gasped as she saw what was inside, a hand going up to cover her mouth. On the black velvet cushion sat a shining silver ring. In its setting (which had been made to look like a thorny vine, the thorns holding in the gem) was a crimson stone that was cut so that when light hit it, a flame appeared to be dancing inside the solid rock.

Lock wrapped his arms around her waist from behind her. "_La pierre de feu._ The fire rock. It's the same thing that the gem in your necklace is made out of." Aubrey looked at him over her shoulder, her eyes wide. He let go of her and walked back around to face her again, taking the box out of her hands and the ring out of the box. "Aubrey." She looked up at him, her eyes staying on his face as he went down to one knee. "Will you marry me?"

It took several tries for Aubrey to speak, but finally she managed. "Yes." She whispered. "Yes, yes, oh, Lock, yes!"

--

"Barrel, stop attempting to be sneaky. It doesn't work." Shock sighed, looking up from her book and over her shoulder at said boy.

Barrel grinned and plopped down next to her. "Why are you all the way out here? I thought you liked parties." 'Here' happened to be the bottom steps of Skellington Manor, where Shock was sitting.

She rolled her eyes. "I did before Sandy had to leave. Lock and Aubrey still haven't come back and they're standing right behind me aren't they?" Barrel nodded. Shock took a deep breath, closing her eyes. Shutting her book, she stood up and turned around, glaring at the couple. "How many times have I told you not to-" The witch stopped suddenly, her mouth falling open.

Barrel peered around at Shock's face. She had her eyes fixed on something intently. Following his girlfriend's gaze, Barrel suddenly realized what she was staring at. The silver ring that was resting on Aubrey's finger.

"Holy crap." He finally managed to get out. That, however, was about the same time as Shock let out a very loud squeal and tackled Aubrey, consequently sending both girls falling to the ground.

"Ow… Shock, that hurt…" Aubrey groaned, extricating herself from beneath the witch.

Shock just laughed and hugged her again. "Congrats." Then, she turned around and glared half-heartedly at Lock. "Took you long enough!"

Lock smirked, shoving his hands in his pockets and shrugging. "I was trying to figure out how to tell Jack."

"Tell Jack what?" Lock leapt around in surprise to see the Pumpkin King and Queen standing behind him, a look of wry amusement on said King's face.

Aubrey stood up and walked over to stand next to Lock. "You tell him or I will." She warned/threatened, her hand conveniently hidden by the fact that she was hugging Lock's arm.

Lock swallowed and, if possible, got slightly paler. "That… that I, uh… iaskedaubreytomarryme." He said, rushing the words together nervously. Jack blinked, then look over at Aubrey.

"And you said yes, I suppose." He said, crossing his arms and frowning.

Aubrey bit her lip. "Well… I didn't say _no_." She said hesitantly, revealing the ring to her father.

Jack sighed, smiling wryly. "Doesn't anyone ask my permission for anything these days?"

"You're not mad?" Aubrey asked hopefully.

Jack laughed. "Mad? How could I be mad? Actually, I've been expecting this for a while." Lock flushed and looked away sheepishly. Jack chuckled. "Well, I suppose we'll have to tell the town tomorrow. It's far too late now, and I believe that all of us would do with a good night's rest." He started up the stairs, then paused and smirked down at Lock and Aubrey. "In our own, _separate_ rooms."

Aubrey and Lock turned crimson as Shock and Barrel collapsed to the ground, laughing.

--

Mercy leapt off of her bed as the door to her room burst open. "Mercy, guess what?"

"Oh." She said, sitting back down. "It's just you two." 'You two' referred to Ed and Johnny, who both had enormous grins on their faces.

"Don't sound so excited." Ed said dryly, still grinning, before tossing her a bag. Mercy caught it and peered inside. Candy, of course.

Johnny let out a small noise that sounded suspiciously whine-like. "Hey!"

Mercy glared at Johnny and Ed, irritated by the fact that they had

Burst into her room without knocking or any sort of warning and

Johnny was now being more annoying than he usually was. But, knowing her

brother, he wouldn't leave her alone, so she finally asked, "What?" She sighed, pulling out a chocolate bat and popping it into her mouth.

"Lock asked Aubrey to marry him!"

Mercy choked on her bat. "Wh-what?!"

Ed nodded. "Yeah, he asked her earlier. You can tell he's been planning it for months; he even took her away to ask."

Johnny rolled his eyes, sticking out his tongue. "Yeah. I'm sure it was all real romantic and perfect."

Mercy scowled slightly. "Great. Glad to know. Now get out of my room!"

Ed and Johnny blinked, but turned and walked out. "Girls." Johnny muttered, shaking his head.

"Sisters." Ed corrected, shutting Mercy's door and effectively the rest of their conversation.

There was a loud 'thump' as Mercy threw her pillow against the window. "Perfect. Of course. Everything she does is always perfect!" She growled, stomping over and grabbing her pillow. "One of these days I'll prove that Aubrey isn't perfect." She muttered, tossing the fluffy pillow back on the bed and flopping down after it. 'I'll prove that I'm better than her.'

--

SC: Woot! I finally got this done! Yeah, I know, it's been a long time coming. But, it's really long, so… forgive me? Anyway, Read and Review! Oh, and better title ideas would be MUCH appreciated.

Ja ne  
SC


	2. Chapter 2

SC: Okay, I know I'm taking forever to update, but this isn't the only story I'm having trouble with. But marching season is almost over now, so I shouldn't have any problem being able to rest and get stuff written. Everyone cheer and say 'yay!'

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas, Oogie's Revenge, or any character from said movie and game. I do, however, own Aubrey, the Skellington triplets, and some of the plot for this story.

--

Chapter 2

The Book of Resurrection

"Dad, are you sure about this?" Aubrey asked, sitting on the couch. "I mean, last time you went wandering off after Halloween, you kinda tried to take over Christmas."

Jack smiled at her wryly. "Yes, I'm sure. And I'm NOT going to try and take over Christmas again." Aubrey, Lock, Shock, and Barrel exchanged a grin. "Besides, I'll only be gone for a month or two."

"The Mayor's gonna flip out when he hears about that." Barrel pointed out.

"Not to worry. I've already talked to Dr. Finklestein; he'll take care of everything while I'm gone. He knows what to do. Behave while I'm gone."

Johnny grinned at his father. "Who, us or them?" He asked, jerking his finger to the four sprawled on the couch.

Jack shook his head, smiling. "All of you. Listen to your mother." He ordered Johnny and Ed, who were sitting on either of the armrests of the couch.

"Why isn't Mercy getting the 'behave yourself' speech?" Ed asked, gesturing to his sister; Mercy was sitting on the arm of the chair Sally had seated herself in.

Jack smirked and ruffled his son's hair. "Because Mercy does what she's told. Don't give your mom any problems, alright?"

"Yessir!" Johnny and Ed said, leaping up and fake-saluting the Pumpkin King. Jack chuckled and walked toward the door.

Sally stood and went after him, catching him at the bottom of the steps. "Jack, I really wish you wouldn't do this. What if something happens while you're gone?"

Jack put his hands on Sally's shoulders. "Sally, nothing is going to happen. But if you really don't want me to go…"

Sally shook her head. "No, you're right. I've just been getting weird feelings all day."

Jack frowned. "Maybe I should stay."

"No, it's alright." She assured him. "It's nothing bad. Just… stranger than normal. I'm sure everything will settle down in a few days; you know how it is around here after Halloween."

Jack laughed. "Yes, you're right." He frowned, troubled. "But Sally, if anything does happen, and you need to reach me-"

"Don't worry, Jack. I know a way." She kissed his cheek. "Good luck. And please be careful."

"I will." He assured her, hugging her tightly before walking through the gates of Skellington Manor and the square.

-_November 5, Leeches' Lake…_-

Ed and Johnny scrambled out of the lake and over to the spot where Lock and Barrel were sitting on the bank. "Lock, let's play chicken!" Johnny begged.

"Yeah, c'mon Barrel!" Ed pleaded, tugging on the older boy's hand.

Lock and Barrel looked at each other and laughed. "Alright, why not." Lock shrugged, standing up. "Hey, Aubrey!" She looked over at him from where she and Shock were practicing their water magic… on each other. "We're gonna play chicken, wanna join?"

"Should we?" She asked Shock.

The witch shrugged. "Don't see why not." Shock trudged over through the water toward the boys. Aubrey started to follow her, then stopped and turned toward the shore.

"Mercy?" Her younger sister looked up from the book she was reading under a tree, far way from the water. "You wanna come play too? I'll be alright with sitting out if you do."

Mercy shook her head. "No. I'm tired, I think I'll just go home."

Aubrey frowned slightly. "Well, alright. Stay on the path." Mercy nodded, picking up her book and walking into the Hinterlands.

"And I don't need your charity." Mercy called over her shoulder as she rounded a twisted corner in the path. Aubrey couldn't have heard her even if she'd said it from the shore; Mercy could hear the loud splashes and playful shrieks and yells from where she was standing.

_"Mercy…"_ Mercy jerked and dropped her book as her name drifted out of the trees, the caller's voice whispery and rough.

Shaking, she bent down and picked up her book. "Calm down, Mercy. It's just the wind, trying to scare you. You just… couldn't feel it." She assured herself, straightening up and starting down the path again.

_"Help me… Mercy…"_ Mercy shrieked, though she managed to keep a grip on her book this time.

Now, Mercy may have had a jealousy problem concerning Aubrey, but she was still a Skellington, and had that strong sense of conscience embedded in her.

Stupid Jack and his stupid morals… er, um, right. Anyway…

"H-hello?" Mercy called tentatively, taking a cautious step toward the edge of the path. She leapt back as the trees seemed to bend away from her and reveal a path through the trees.

Now, if there was one thing that Jack had taught the triplets, it was to never- and I repeat, NEVER(!!!)- stray off the path in the Hinterlands. Ever. Ever ever, in fact. However, he also taught them to also help people who needed it. Conscience overruling logic, Mercy stepped through the trees, following the impromptu path that was forming in front of her eyes.

Finally, the tree-line curved, and as Mercy stepped through, she saw that she was in a perfectly circular clearing. There was nothing there, absolutely nothing-

Except for the pile of ash in the center of the clearing. "Help me!" A tiny- and muffled- voice called. Kneeling near the pile, Mercy dug through an inch or so of ash before something bright green scuttled out of the pile and up her arm. She jumped slightly, but living in Halloween Town, bugs were something Mercy was used to.

"Thanks, dollface." However, not even she was used to TALKING bugs. Mercy blinked, stunned. "I thought I'd never dig my way out of there."

"How can you…?" Mercy started, then changed her question. "Who ARE you?"

The bug blinked up at her from her shoulder. "A victim of circumstance, I'm afraid. You heard've a girl named Aubrey?"

"Aubrey's my older sister." Mercy replied bitterly, sitting down. She focused her eyes on the ground, just in time to miss the sinister smile flit across the bug's face.

"Somethin' wrong, sugar?"

Mercy scowled slightly. "It's just… ooh, she makes me so mad sometimes! Aubrey's always so perfect! It pisses me off."

The bug crawled up to Mercy's face and patted her cheek, grinning. "Dollface, I think you and I are going to be GREAT friends. The name's Oogie, Oogie Boogie. And I may have a way to help you get back at your sister. But I'll need some help."

Mercy paused. The name sounded familiar, but for some reason she couldn't remember where she'd heard it. Not that she particularly cared at the moment; right now, all she could think of was that this little bug- a little odd in itself, really- was going to help her get even with Aubrey. "What sort of help?"

"The best kind: _revenge_."

--

"Grandpa?" Mercy called, stepping through the door of Dr. Finklestein's laboratory. "Are you here?" When no response came, she took a step toward the stairs. "Igor? Grandma?"

Her call echoed through the house, an obvious sign of emptiness. Mercy let out a sigh of relief. "Okay, no one's here."

Something moved in the pocket of her jeans, and Oogie crawled up and onto her shoulder. "Good. You said you found his library?"

Mercy nodded. "Yeah, but what-"

Oogie shook his head. "All in good time, dollface. Now let's get to that library." With a nod, Mercy took up off the stairs. She crept over to the door carefully and tugged on it.

"It's locked." She said after several useless tugs. Oogie 'hmph'ed and crawled down her arm and hand and into the lock below the doorknob. Faintly, Mercy could hear the sound of light 'clicks' and grunts, then stepped back with a gasp as the door swung open easily on its hinges- albeit not without a loud screech.

"You were sayin'?" Oogie grinned, scuttling back up to her shoulder. Mercy rolled her eyes a little before stepping into the room.

"What… what are we looking for?" She asked. Oogie leapt off of her shoulder and onto one of the shelves.

"Don't worry your pretty little head, dollface. I'll find it." And with that, he began to scuttle along the first of the many shelves occupying the room. Mercy sighed and sat down against the open door, watching as the little green bug made its way around the room.

Ten minutes later, Mercy looked up as a loud, "Aha!" came from the green speck on the opposite wall. She pulled herself to her feet. "What, did you find it?" She questioned, walking over to the opposite shelf and examining the book that Oogie stood in front of. Reaching up, she tugged it off of the shelf, sending a cloud of dust into the air. "It's… kinda heavy…" She said, trying to adjust it in her arms to make it easier to carry.

Oogie jumped off the shelf and back onto her shoulder. "Let's go, dollface. Can't let that doctor find us here."

--

"Aubrey!"

The white-haired girl looked up just in time to see a black haired figure tackle her with a hug. "Vida?" She questioned.

The cat-vampire mix stepped back and grinned at her. "In the flesh." Her emerald eyes flickered down to Aubrey's hand. "So it is true. Congrats."

"Oh my god, even at the University?"

Vida put a hand on her shoulder. "Aubrey, you're the freaking Pumpkin Princess- it's kinda big news that you're engaged."

Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I guess. How've you been, we haven't seen much of you or C.K. since you guys got accepted to Underworld University."

She shrugged. "Alright. College is killer, no pun intended. We've barely got any free time."

"But you're still dating."

"Hell yes. You know me, I'm stubborn as a brick wall."

Aubrey laughed. "Except when it came to Lock."

Vida smirked. "I said I'm stubborn, but even I know a lost cause when I see one. Case in point, you have a ring on your finger."

"Yes, as everyone should now know."

Aubrey turned around and smacked Lock on the shoulder. "Don't do that!"

He grinned at her, rubbing the spot she had hit. "I am ninja, hear me roar."

"Grr." She finished, turning back to Vida. "He's gotten a bad habit of sneaking up on everybody around town and scaring them out of their skin. Now it's just annoying, though."

"Hey!"

Vida laughed. "Yeah. Didn't he do that to the chem teacher in high school?"

Lock paused. "Oh yeah. He was carrying the frog's breath-"

"Which was actually a bottle of dragon's breath we'd switched the label on." Aubrey interrupted. "So when he dropped it, he almost blew up the lab."

"Fourth time." Vida sighed. "I'm still wondering how you managed to escape getting expelled."

Lock grinned. "My witty charm and good looks?"

"Actually, I was thinking your girlfriend." Vida corrected. Aubrey laughed as Lock let go of her to cross him arms and pout.

"Oh, stop pouting and act your age for once." She mock-scolded.

Vida laughed, then stopped as she peered around Aubrey. "Hey, isn't that Mercy over there?" Aubrey and Lock turned around to see the red-headed Skellington running toward the manor.

"Yeah, that is." Lock muttered. "She must've been coming from Dr. Finklestein's."

"Grandpa's?" Aubrey asked. "What would she be doing there? She knows he's busy handling the preparations for Halloween."

Lock shrugged. "Maybe she forgot."

"Yeah... right." She muttered.

Vida waved it off. "Ah, don't worry- she's eight."

"That isn't exactly reassuring. When I was eight, the key's power started working."

Lock kssed her temple. "Don't worry. I'm sure it was nothing."

Aubrey sighed, and finally smiled up at him. "Yeah, I'm sure you're right. I'm just a little stressed out with dad not here."

"Hey, Vida!" All three turned toward the Witches' Shop to see Shock and Barrel running over. Shock had a bag in her hands. Barrel grinned. "See, told ya."

"Oh shut up." Shock snapped. "What are you doing back here?"

Vida shrugged. "No classes today. Ironically enough, the science lab blew up. Too much toad wart in someone's potion is what I heard."

Shock scoffed. "Amateurs."

Barrel put an arm around her shoulders. "Now, Shock, not everyone gets offers to join the Witches' Council at twenty-one."

Aubrey rose an eyebrow. "_Excuse moi_?"

"You know what I mean." Barrel said as Shock threw a spell at Aubrey's head.

--

"Urgh! Where is it?" Lock stopped outside the door to Shock's room. "I just bought some yesterday..."

"Shock?" Lock asked, pushing the door open slightly. "You lose something?"

The witch put her hands on her hips with a frustrated huff. "Yeah, a bottle of basilisk tongues. I just bought it yesterday at the Witches' Shop."

Lock crossed his arms. If there was one thing he knew for sure about Shock and her potion making, it was that she never lost ingredients. One look at the uberly neat shelves covering the entire left wall of her room confirmed it. "Weird. Where'd you set it?"

Shock pointed to the table next to her cauldron. "Right there. The potion had to set, so I went down to grab something to eat. When I came back, it was gone."

Lock frowned, tapping his claws on his forearm. "Strange. Here, I'll help you look."

Just around the corner of the hallway, Mercy let out a relieved sigh. She peeked around the corner to make sure that Lock and Shock were still occupied in her room before running down to her own. If either of them saw her, then they made no comment toward the girl.

"Did you get it?" Oogie asked from the windowsill. Mercy pulled a clear glass bottle from her pocket. Sitting inside were several blood red, forked tongues as thick as her fingers.

"I didn't have time to get just one- Shock came back too fast." She explained.

Oogie gave what Mercy interpreted as a shrug- or as close to one as an insect could get. "Just as well. Dragon tongues go rotten fast. But we may have to find a different source for the ingredients- I forgot what a neat freak that little brat was."

Mercy raised an eyebrow. "You knew Shock?"

Oogie grinned at her. "I knew all three of those little monsters- where do ya' think they got the name Boogie's Boys, darlin?"

"You- you're the one who raised Lock, Shock, and Barrel?" She asked.

A quick nod. "I was- until your sister turned 'em on me! After everything I'd done for them, ungrateful little wretches."

Now Mercy could remember where she'd heard the name Oogie Boogie- she'd overheard Aubrey and Lock talking about him on Halloween last year.

_"Lock, I can't help it. What if Oogie does come back?"_

_"Aubs, listen to me. Oogie Boogie is NOT coming back. Not this time."_

_"I'd feel better if we checked."_

_"It's been twelve years, Aubrey. He's not coming back."_

Mercy had never paid attention to the conversation, because it ended right then when Shock and Barrel had walked in. But she did remember that Aubrey had sounded worried- really worried.

'Of course she was worried.' Mercy thought. 'She did something to Oogie and was scared he was going to come back and get revenge. Lock must've been in on it too.'

"Well… I could try and get the ingredients from the Witches' Shop." Mercy said. "Hazel and Zoë should be busy cleaning up their stuff from Halloween still." She said slowly. "They probably wouldn't notice if a few things went missing."

"Then let's get goin'."

--

It took three days to get all the ingredients from the Witches' Shop- it would've only taken one, but Oogie insisted that we not take it all at once, otherwise we might get caught. I don't know why he was so worried- no one's going to suspect a bug of stealing potion ingredients.

I let out a sigh and looked down at the book again. "Okay, let's see…" I muttered, running my finger over the oh-so-helpful diagram on the page. "Basilisk tongue there, chimera scale, frog's breath, spider fangs, bat wings…" I looked up. "I think that's everything, Oogie."

Oogie was sitting on the pile of ashes in the center of the clearing I'd found him in. "Good. Then finish the circle and let's get started."

I grabbed the bottle of insects next to me and the burnt scrap of cloth and walked over to Oogie. He scuttled onto the cloth as I set it down, and I quickly dumped out the jar, retreating behind the nearby trees. The bugs, of course immediately tried to scatter, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier that had come out of nowhere. My eyes flew back to the green bug on top of the pile. Oogie was glowing, and floating into the air. The ashes, bugs, and spell ingredients all flew around him in a tornado. I looked away as a brilliant light flared up in a pillar shooting up to the sky.

A loud rumble cracked through the air, and I looked up to see storm clouds circling around us, drifting over the town. Lightning blazed through the sky, and rain began to pour down. I muttered a spell to repel the water and turned back to the clearing. The pillar had faded, and all that was left was smoke- lots of it. "Oogie?" I called, stepping out from behind the tree.

Cackling rose from within the smoke cloud and I could make out a large figure. "I'm back, baby! Time to have some fun."

--

SC: Okay, so, now that I've managed to completely alienate everyone against Mercy, chapter's over! She gets better, I promise! Anyway, there's chapter two of Quintessence. Sorry for the long wait! School's a bitch… Read and review please!

Ja ne  
SC


	3. Chapter 3

SC: Okay, I curse junior year. It's draining all my creativity, and the week we get back from Christmas break- we have tests all week! What the French, toast?!

Okay, now that that's out of my system… here's chapter three of Quintessence. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas, Oogie's Revenge, or any character from said movie and game. I do, however, own Aubrey, the Skellington triplets, and some of the plot for this story.

--

Chapter 3

Nightmare

_There had always been a room in the dream, an enormous room glowing darkly with shining lights. And there had been people, many strangers with blurred faces, and some who were vaguely familiar, except that they seemed to be wearing masks carved from ice, which had frozen their faces into exaggerated expressions of fear. Then it would vanish, leaving only an echo of violent noises and a feeling of heart-stopping terror._

_But this time, Aubrey didn't wake up._

_She was eight years old again, standing on Oogie's roulette wheel. Screams of pain echoed around her, even though the room was empty except for her. She pressed her hands over her ears, forcing her eyes shut. "Stop… somebody, make it stop!"_

_And then it did. "Aubrey…" Her eyes snapped open, shining with fear. "Auuuuubreeey…" The voice drew her name out into a malicious laugh._

_Aubrey found herself unable to breathe as a large shadow covered her body. A rough, burlap covered hand grabbed her throat and turned her around so she was staring into soulless black eyes. "Guess who's back, baby?"_

--

Aubrey Skellington shot up in bed screaming. It petered off into a short, panicked whimper as she looked around her room. Covering her face with her hands, she gulped in air in an attempt to calm the terrified whimpering coming from her throat. Her oversized T-shirt was stuck to her back from cold sweat, and was trickling down between her shoulder blades.

She almost let out a shriek as her door burst open, but swallowed it down when she saw Lock's familiar figure standing in the doorway. "Aubrey?" He asked, before seeing the fear on her face. He shut the door before walking over to her bed and sitting down. "What's-"

He stopped as Aubrey threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. "Aubrey?" Lock asked softly, putting a hand on her back and the other touched her hair. "Aubrey, what's wrong?"

"The nightmare- that stupid nightmare's back!" She cried, clutching his neck tighter.

Lock's eyes widened as he looked down at her. "Aubs, you don't mean- not that one."

She nodded. "_That_ one. The nightmare about Oogie." She looked up at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Lock- what if we were wrong? What if Oogie is back?"

Lock paused before he answered her. "We'll go see Dr. Finklestein in the morning- see if he can figure something out. Okay?" She nodded.

Lock kissed her forehead and moved to get up, stopping when Aubrey's grip on him tightened. "Lock… stay here. Please." She begged.

He paused, then took another look at the fear on her face and nodded. Aubrey's expression calmed slightly as Lock lay down next to her. "Go to sleep, Aubrey." He whispered, kissing her cheek. She nodded and cuddled into his chest, closing her eyes.

--

The next morning, Barrel refused to stop grinning at Lock. Finally, with an irritated sigh, the devil snapped his book shut and looked up. "_What_?"

"Dude, you went into Aubrey's room last night and never came out."

Lock threw his book across the room at him. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Barrel. Nothing happened."

"Right. Of course." Barrel snickered.

Lock glared at him. "Look, Aubrey-" He peered up the stairs to make sure no one was coming down them. "Aubrey had _that_ nightmare again."

It took a moment for the shock to spread across Barrel's face. "No."

"Yeah. We're going to see Dr. Finklestein once she gets up." He sighed, slumping back in his seat. "Barrel, I'm getting worried. Something's going on, and it's too conveniently timed- I mean, Jack leaves, and Aubrey has a nightmare that hasn't bothered her since she was twelve?"

"And last time she had it, Oogie really had come back." Barrel finished. "I remember. You don't really think that Oogie's back do you?"

"I don't know what to think." He sighed. Lock straightened as footsteps padded down the stairs. Aubrey and Shock stopped at the foot of the stairs.

"She already told me." Shock said. "Get dressed. We're going- now."

--

"Hm, it's good that you came to me." Dr. Finklestein said, wheeling around his lab table. "And your fears are not unprecedented. My machines picked up some very unusual readings during last night's storm."

"Unusual how?" Barrel asked.

"An unusually large amount of magical energy disrupted Halloween Town's atmosphere. The storm we experienced was discharge."

"Discharge?" Shock asked. "But that only happens from summoning spells. And if the spell was big enough to cause a storm with its discharge…"

"Who the hell summoned what?" Lock muttered.

Dr. Finklestein nodded. "That's exactly what I've been trying to discover myself. This disturbance is no doubt dangerous, and I have taken a few… precautions." He motioned the four of them over to the table in the center of the lab.

"Whoa." Barrel said in awe, staring at what lay on the table.

"Are these for us?" Lock asked.

Dr. Finklestein nodded. "I made these weapons in case of emergency while Jack was gone."

Aubrey eyed the items. "Well, this certainly can qualify."

"I though you'd see it that way." He said. "Now, each of these weapons is specifically modified for each of you. Aubrey, the scythe."

She took the weapon off the table, examining it in her hand. The blade was obsidian black and shaped like a wing, while the handle was silver with runes etched into spiraling patterns.

"Lock, the sword." The devil picked it up, grinning. The crimson, rapier blade glinted even in the dim light, sinking into the ebony black handle. The ebony-colored hand guard spiraled over his fist like flames. "And the hammer, Barrel, is for you."

Barrel hefted up the weapon. Even larger than the scythe Aubrey held, the giant hammer in Barrel's hand was made of bone, held together by some unknown power. "What about Shock?" Barrel asked.

"Ah, yes. Shock, I've put quite a bit of work into your weapon." He pulled out a gold ring set with a large purple rock.

The witch's eyes widened. "Is that…"

"A philosopher's stone, yes." Dr. Finklestein said, handing her the ring. "It will increase your magic's power tenfold, but use it cautiously, as it will wear you out faster." She nodded and put the ring on her finger. The stone glowed brighter for a moment before settling into a dull smolder.

All five of them looked up suddenly as the howl-like sound of the town's alarm blared through the air. "Guess your weapons are about to get their first test run, Doctor F." Lock said, running toward the elevator. Shock and Barrel followed, but Aubrey ran the opposite direction, toward the window.

"Aubrey! Come on!" Shock yelled.

She smirked over her shoulder. "You've got your way, I've got mine!" She called, shoving open the window and jumping out, flaring her wings to catch the wind. She landed again when Lock, Shock, and Barrel were just coming out of Dr. Finklestein's gates. She walked over to Drake and Ra, who had been the ones to sound the alarm.

"What's going on?" Lock asked, running over.

Drake pointed at the gate. "That!"

Turning, all four saw what had caused such a panic in the square. A horde of skeletons and ghosts were marching toward the town, shrieking and wailing at the top of their lungs. "What the hell?" Lock murmured.

"Where did all of them come from?" Barrel asked.

Aubrey adjusted the scythe in her grip. "I don't know, but I doubt that they're on our side."

"The gate's shut, though- they can't get in, right?" Ra asked.

Shock looked over at him. "I wouldn't count on it. You two need to get everyone out of the square and into somewhere safe."

"The meeting hall." Aubrey said. "And find Clown! I want that gate open before they break it down." Not needing to be told twice, the two ran off, heading in different directions.

"Aubs, they'll be at the gate before they manage to find Clown." Lock said. "And the ghosts'll just come through if the skeletons don't break it down."

"Hence why we aren't waiting. Shock, get your broom. Barrel, do you still remember that float spell?"

"Yeah, but-"

"Cast it on you and Lock."

Shock looked over at Aubrey as she finished the summoning spell for her broom. "Aubrey, we aren't seriously going out there, are we?"

"That was sort of the plan." Aubrey said. And, with a flap of her wings, she was in the air.

"She's insane." Shock muttered, grinning. "I like it!" Swinging her leg over her broomstick, she took off over the gate.

Barrel sighed. "We have to go be chivalrous and help them, don't we?"

"Yeah." Lock said, following the girls.

By the time that Lock and Barrel had landed, Shock and Aubrey were already busy fighting off the army of monsters. "'Bout time you two showed up!" Shock called, casting another fireball down at the group of skeletons below her. It hit one dead on and reduced it to ash, sending the rest scattering into burnt piles of bone.

Aubrey's spun around, the blade of the scythe slicing through a ghost. It let out a scream and disappeared into mist. "We could use some help- there's at least a hundred of these things!"

Lock sliced through three skeletons as they headed toward Aubrey's back. "Seems fair enough." He smirked back at her. "But let's see if we can even the odds, shall we?"

Barrel shifted the hammer in his grip, putting both hands on the handle. "Oh, we shall." He said, raising it back over his head and slamming it down on an unsuspecting skeleton. The shockwave itself knocked down another four as they collapsed into useless piles of bone.

-Halloween Town-

"What's taking so long?" Ra asked, looking in Hazel and Zoe's cauldron. "Why can't we see them?"

"Be patient, Ra!" Hazel scolded. "It takes time to devise the Seer's Potion!"

"I don't think we'll need it!" Clown exclaimed happily. "Look!" He zoomed over to the gates, unlocking them.

Lock, Aubrey, Shock, and Barrel came through, looking so tired that you would've thought they hadn't slept in days. "You got rid of them all?" Drake asked hopefully.

Aubrey nodded. "Yeah, for now."

The Creature Under the Stairs blinked. "For... now?"

Shock shifted her broom over her shoulder. "Something's producing a weird energy out in the Hinterlands. Unfortunately, there's some kind of barrier around the source, so we can't get to it. That's where all those things came from."

"And that means that there will probably be more." Aubrey sighed. "Clown, get that gate locked. I don't want there to be any surprise attacks while the town's unguarded."

Clown nodded. "R-Right." He said nervously, scooting around them and closing the gate.

--

"Ow!" Aubrey flinched as Sally cleaned off a wound on her wing.

Sally sighed. "Sweetie, wouldn't it just be easier to let Barrel heal this?"

Aubrey shook her head. "Barrel's barely got enough energy to keep himself healed, mom. And with the attack yesterday..."

"What was it, the fifth one?" Sally asked. Aubrey nodded, sighing. "I wish that Jack was here..."

"Me too." Aubrey sighed, standing. "I'm going to go see how Barrel's doing. Today's been too peaceful, so if there is an attack I want to make sure we won't have to make sure not to get injured."

Sally just nodded as Aubrey walked out of the room and down the hall to the mage's room. She pushed the door open cautiously. Barrel sat up and waved at her. "Hey Aubrey."

She smiled, relieved. "Hey. You alright?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I've gotten most of my energy back, thanks to that potion Shock brewed up." He laughed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "The nap probably helped, too." His gaze fell on the limp wing at her side. "What happened?"

"Nothing. Skeleton got a hold of me and ripped out a few feathers. I sliced its head off."

"Are Lock and Shock okay?"

Aubrey nodded. "Lock nearly cut off his own arm trying to show off with that sword of his, and Shock's broom is in worse shape than she is."

"What happened?"

"She dropped her mace and smacked a skeleton with it instead." Barrel laughed, but it cut short as the siren sounded outside.

Aubrey growled. "I knew it had been too peaceful." Barrel threw his covers off and ran out after her.

"Where's Clown?" Aubrey yelled, coming outside.

Lock looked over his shoulder at her. "I told him to go hide with everyone else. There wasn't going to be enough time to get the gates shut."

Shock hefted the iron mace in her hand, the ring on her finger glowing brightly. "We knew it was going to come to town sometime."

Aubrey sighed, shifting her grip on her weapon. "Yeah, but I wish it hadn't."

"Too late, here they come!" Barrel yelled, swinging at a pair of skeletons that had leapt out of the pack to try and attack him.

Aubrey flew up into the air, swinging the scythe. The blade detached from the handle and flew down on a chain, slicing through a ghost and two skeletons before hitting the ground. The fight proceeded this way for almost ten minutes, with the four trick-or-treaters managing to slowly but surely cut down the ranks of the mindless slaves, until...

"AIIIEEEEE!"

Aubrey looked over her shoulder, holding off a pair of skeletons with her scythe's handle, and her eyes widened. "Mercy!" A glowing green skeleton had the youngest Skellington triplet slung over its shoulder and disappeared into the Town Hall. Shoving away her own assailants, Aubrey flew out of the mass of fighting and through the doorway. The doors slammed shut behind her, and a glowing violet barrier cut them off from the rest of the town.

"Aubrey!" Lock shouted, turning around. A skeleton swiped his back with clawed finger bones, leaving three long scratches through the devil's shirt. Lock turned around, cutting it in half with the blade in his hand.

"Lock, we'll get her out of there later! We have to get rid of these guys first, before they destroy the town!" Barrel yelled, emphasizing his point by smashing a skeleton who was trying to rip off the head off a fountain near the walls INTO said wall. Lock grimaced and, with one last look toward the Hall, dove back into the fray to help Barrel.

--

Aubrey jumped as the door slammed shut behind her. "What the hell?" She yelped, turning and grabbing the knob. She let out a hiss of pain and pulled her hand back as a pulsing purple barrier attacked her hand with small bolts of lightning. "A warding barrier...?" She murmured. Shaking her head, she turned back around, adjusting her grip on the scythe. 'Let's deal with this first. Save Mercy, then deal with the door.' She looked around. 'But... where's the skeleton?' Taking a few steps forward, she lowered the weapon to her side. "Mercy? Are you in here?"

"Oh yeah. I'm in here." Aubrey looked up to see her little sister sitting on stage.

Aubrey let out a sigh of relief, putting her hand over her chest. "Mercy. You're all right. Wait, where's the thing that kidnapped you?"

Mercy shrugged. "Well, I wouldn't say kidnapped. I mean, is it really a kidnapping when you've got it all planned out?"

Aubrey took a step back. "What? Mercy, what are you talking about?" Something cold wrapped around her ankle and pulled her down to the floor. Aubrey looked over her shoulder to see that her own shadow had somehow grabbed her leg and was pulling her down to the ground. "Wha-what is this?!"

"What's wrong, angel?" Aubrey froze, watching with terrified eyes as another shadow rose from hers, in an all too familiar shape.

"No." She whispered, her voice shaking. "No, no, no, this can't be happening. We killed you."

The Oogie-shadow chuckled. "Now, that's an interesting story." As Oogie continued speaking, more shadows wrapped around Aubrey's ankles and wrists, lifting her into the air. "You see, your fire happy boyfriend DID kill me. But thanks to the key's evil power when possessed by your dear father Raphael... well..." He did a twirl.

"Bastard." Aubrey spat as more tendrils of shadow crawled up her body, wrapping around her torso and pinning her arms to hers sides. She struggled in the bonds, glaring hatefully at Oogie.

"Ooh, I'm SO scared." He laughed. "But, before I decide what to do with you, I'll finish telling you my little story. Raphael's magic may have brought me back to "life," but my ashes were still all shook up with your precious tree's. It took me months to pull all my pieces back together, but when I finally did, I found myself buried beneath the ashes, paralyzed by the lingering magic that Raphael hadn't managed to destroy."

She spat at him, then shrieked as the bonds tightened, making her bones creak under the pressure, on the edge of breaking. Aubrey went limp in the tendrils' grip, tears of pain and beads of sweat mingling on her face.

Oogie seemed not to notice, thought Mercy was grinning sinisterly. "All I needed was a little help to get free."

"Which is where I came in." Mercy said, hopping off the stage edge and walking over next to Oogie.

Oogie patted her head. "Yes. That's where Mercy came in. The Skellington magic in her broke through yours and allowed me to escape. She collected the spell ingredients, the book from that idiot doctor's library, and did everything else I needed to get my body back. All just so she could get revenge on you. And now, I'm getting revenge on Halloween Town, and the rest of the Holidays. I'm going to become the king of all seven holidays!" Oogie cackled.

"You're insane." Aubrey gasped. "This will never work. We'll stop you."

"'We?'" Mercy asked, scoffing. "Who's this 'we' you speak of? Daddy's gone, and once we deal with you, Lock, Shock, and Barrel won't be a problem."

Oogie chuckled. "Well said. Now, say 'bye-bye' to the world, and hello to infinite darkness!"

The shadows wrapped around Aubrey's body slithered around her arms and legs, pulling them out and making the girl look much like a sacrificial offering. Aubrey struggled in their grip. "What are you doing?!"

Mercy waved at her. "Bye Aubrey."

--

"That's the last of them." Barrel said, kicking the arm of a skeleton he just turned into dust.

"Good." Lock said, putting his sword back into the sheath buckled around his waist. "Now we can go-" His next words would have been 'help Aubrey,' if a scream hadn't issued from Town Hall. "Aubrey!" Forgetting any sense of planning he might've had, Lock ran at the doors, only to abruptly and painfully slam into the barrier. He stumbled back, then glared at the glowing purple mist before throwing every ounce of magic he could muster at it.

Shock and Barrel ran over. "Lock, stop it!" Shock said, grabbing his wrist before he could launch another fireball. "This isn't getting you anywhere!"

"Well what do you want me to do?" He growled, eyes flashing dangerously. "Leave her in there?"

"We're not saying that." Barrel said calmly. "It would just be a better idea to not waste all our energy trying to break in through a magical barrier. Trying to flambe it won't do any good."

Lock grumbled, crossing his arms. Shock pushed past him and put a hand against the purple barrier. Wincing as the minature lightning bolts attacked her hand, she sent a pulse of magic down her arm. It ate through the barrier like acid, and soon the purple mist was all but gone. The doors were slammed open, courtesy of Lock, and the three ran inside. "Wha...? It's completely empty!" Barrel said, walking further.

Lock walked up to the stage, looking around the room disbelievingly. His foot came down on something and he stepped back, his gaze switching to the floor. His eyes widened as he knelt down and picked the item up. "No..." He whispered, holding it in his palm.

It was Aubrey's engagement ring.

"Oh my god... Lock, come over here! We found Mercy!" Barrel called. Lock looked over his shoulder, and, tucking the ring in his pocket, walked over. The youngest of the Skellington triplets was lying on the floor beneath one of the benches, unconscious. Lock pulled her out from underneath the bench and scooped her up.

"C'mon. Let's get out of here."

--

SC: Has anyone else noticed that I have a thing for torturing Aubrey? Anyone?

Lock, Shock, Barrel, and Puck: (raise hands)

Aubrey: (too busy glaring at me to respond)

SC: Hey, I do all of this for a reason. I have a plan, you know. Besides, we all know that we love angsty, emo Lock.

Lock: I don't!

SC: Your opinion doesn't count. At least I didn't hypnotize you again, so stop complaining. Anyway, sorry it took so long! My computer's had a virus for like a week, so I haven't been able to do ANYTHING. More updates will follow soon! Read and review please!

Ja ne

SC


	4. Chapter 4

SC: Woohoo. I have somewhat gotten over my block of writing! Let us all cheer and celebrate! However, I do have some strange news: I may have created a monster. For some reason beyond my own comprehension, I decided to introduce my father to fanfiction. Oh yes. Stupid, stupid SpontaneousCombustion. (And daddy, if you're reading this, no offense!)

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas, Oogie's Revenge, or any character from said movie and game. I do, however, own Aubrey, the Skellington triplets, and some of the plot for this story.

Chapter 4

In Which the Mad Get Madder

Shock looked up the stairs as Barrel came down. "How is he?"

"The wound wasn't too bad- it just bled a lot." The mage sighed, sitting down on the couch next to her.

"Barrel, that isn't what I meant."

His grey-blue eyes flickered over to her face, and he sighed. "I know, Shock. But he still isn't talking to anyone. Not even Johnny and Ed." He sighed again. "This is worse than the time Aubrey had to go back to Living World..."

Shock nodded, leaning her head on his shoulder. Barrel put his arm around her, kissing her cheek. They both looked up as Sally walked in. She smiled at the two of them. "Hey Sally." Shock greeted. "Did Dr. Finklestein say anything?"

Sally's smile faded, and she shook her head. "No. I'm afraid that the doctor doesn't know what could have happened to Aubrey." Her gaze went upstairs.

Barrel answered her unasked question. "He's still up there."

The ragdoll sighed. "Poor Lock. I can't imagine how he feels right now..." She started toward the kitchen. "I think I'll make him something, even if he doesn't want to eat it."

"_You_ knock."

"What? Why do I have to?"

"Because I'm older than you and I say so."

"Two minutes, Johnny. Two freaking minutes!"

Both boys jumped as they heard a laugh behind them. "He's not going to talk to you." Mercy said. "He won't talk to anyone, and you've already tried."

Ed frowned at his younger sister. "Glad to see you're in such a great mood. You do remember that Aubrey disappeared trying to save you, right?"

"Of course I do. But what do you want from me? I'm not going to sit around and sulk." She turned down the hall and, flipping her hair over her shoulder, walked away.

Johnny stuck his tongue out at her back. "Geez. Cranky much?"

Ed sighed. "Unfortunately, she's right. Lock hasn't said a word in almost a week." He paused. "Did you see that bag she was carrying?"

Johnny raised a non-existent eyebrow. "Yeah... what of it?"

"It was rather large. What the heck is she carrying around that she needs a bag THAT big for it?"

Johnny paused to think about this, then grinned sinisterly. "I think I see your point. Shall we?"

Ed smirked. "Oh, we shall." The two of them took off down the hall, skirting around their mother, who lifted the plate of food in her hands over her head.

"Be careful, boys!" She called. There was a yell of 'okay' and 'yes ma'am' before she heard the door open and shut. Shaking her head, Sally continued down the hall and knocked on Lock's door.

There wasn't a reply, not that she had expected one. "Lock, it's Sally. I'm coming in, okay?" She turned the knob and pushed the door open, expertly balancing the other tray in her other hand. She peered in. "Lock…?"

The devil was lying on his bed with his back to the door and didn't move even slightly at Sally's arrival. She frowned sadly and walked over, setting the tray on the table next to his bed. "I made you some lunch. Try and eat it, Lock." No reply. Sally sat down on the edge of the bed and touched his shoulder. "I know you're worried, Lock. But we'll find Aubrey." She leant over and kissed his cheek in a very motherly show of affection before standing up and walking out, shutting the door behind her.

Lock glanced over his shoulder as the door clicked shut, then sat up slightly and looked at the tray of food sitting on his table. Now, as per one of the perks of being dead, Lock didn't _really_ have to eat, but out of habit and the annoying pangs from his stomach- and the fact that Sally was an amazing cook- he did. He sighed and sat up, turning around and grabbing the sandwich with one hand. The other was in a fist around a familiar-looking silver ring. After taking a couple bites of his sandwich, he set it back down and flopped back on his bed. He just wasn't in the mood for anything.

"Hello?" Mercy called. "Grandma? Igor?" She smiled as her voice echoed. "Perfect." She muttered, setting her bag down on the table and unbuckling it. Reaching inside, she pulled out one of the items, a jar full of a green, soupy liquid. She turned around and started searching the cupboards. "Bowls, bowls... where does grandma keep the- aha!" She reached up into the now opened cabinet and pulled out a rather large bowl and set it down next to the jar. Unscrewing the lid, she poured the soup into the bowl, careful not to spill. Once the soup had been transferred, she slung the bag back over her shoulder, picked up the bowl and started up the stairs, walking slowly and carefully as not to slosh the soup out of the bowl. Nudging the elevator door open with her foot, she stepped inside, jerking slightly as the elevator started up. When the doors opened again, she stepped out into Dr. Finklestein's lab.

"Grandpa?" She asked. Dr. Finklestein turned around and smiled at her.

"Ah, Mercy. What are you doing here?"

She offered up the bowl. "I brought you lunch. Mom said you hadn't left your lab in a while, so I figured you could use it."

He smiled as he took the bowl and patted her head. "Thank you sweetheart." Mercy turned around, grinning slyly as she walked back toward the elevator. She stopped as the bowl clattered to the floor and Dr. Finklestein started snoring. Walking over to a cart nearby, she lifted the bag off her shoulder and set it down on the top, then wheeled it over to the unconscious mad scientist. Opening up the bag again, she let the cloth fall away, revealing a bright green brain with a glowing red eye on each cerebellum. Its yellow pupils focused on Mercy and she glared at it.

"Don't give me that look, I'm working on it." She snapped, walking over to Dr. Finklestein. With a quick tug, she popped his skull open, and his gray-pink brain fell out of his tilted head onto the floor. "Oops." She muttered. She scooped the brain off the floor and set in on the cart next to the green one. The green brain hissed and wiggled as if it was going to try and knock it off the table. "Stop that or I'll drop _you_." Mercy warned as she picked it up. It fell still, its eyes wandering over the room instead. Quickly, Mercy popped it into Dr. Finklestein's head and closed the hinged skull. Smiling contentedly to herself, she grabbed her bag and headed back toward the elevator.

"Grandpa really oughta- oof- oil this door or somethin'." Johnny muttered, heaving against the large metal door. It inched open, and the two boys squeezed through. Ed forced it shut once they were inside. Johnny was looking around. "Where is everyone?"

"Grandma's probably shopping with Igor, and grandpa hasn't left his lab in a while..." He looked over at the table and the jar sitting on it. "Johnny, lookit this."

The older Skellington boy walked over and looked at the jar and the little bit of green liquid barely covering the bottom. He sniffed it experimentally, then frowned. "This is mom's soup. I can smell the frog's breath and worm's wart. But there's something else in there too." He offered the jar over to Ed, who sniffed it.

"It's familiar, but..." The boys looked at each other. "Deadly nightshade soup!"

"Mercy must've brought it." Ed said, setting the jar back down.

"But why?" Both of them looked up as the elevator clanged down from the lab. "Hide!" Johnny hissed, grabbing Ed's arm and tugging him underneath the staircase. Moments later, Mercy walked downstairs with a contented smile on her face. She grabbed the jar off the table and stuffed it back into her bag before shoving open the door, slipping out, and shutting it again.

Once it was shut, the two boys came out from their hiding place. "She was up in the lab." Ed muttered.  
"Well, then let's go!" Johnny said, grabbing his arm. Their footsteps echoed through the empty house as they ran up the stairs and clambered into the elevator. The pushed open the door rather noisily as it reached the lab and they stepped out. Ed clutched Johnny's arm.

"Johnny," He whispered, "Look." He pointed over at the cart.

Johnny's non-existent eyes widened. "That's grandpa's brain! But... if it's there..." He said pointing to it. "Then what's...?" His finger swiveled over to Dr. Finklestein, who, at that moment, popped open his head. The twins clapped a hand over their brother's mouth at the same time as they say the green, red-eyed brain.

"Get the brain." Johnny ordered. Ed nodded, grabbing it off of the cart. They both scooted back into the elevator, and Johnny slammed the door shut. "Go down, go down." Johnny growled, slamming on the button repeatedly. Finally, the elevator jerked downward. As it reached its lowest destination, the two boys scrambled out, Ed still cradling the real brain against his chest. Johnny bolted down the stairs ahead of Ed, shoving the door open. "Hurry up!"

"I am hurrying!" Ed snapped back, running after him. They were hardly out the door when they heard a loud roar and something black rose from the ground in front of them.

"You little brats!" It yelled, glowing green eyes glaring at them.

And so, Johnny and Ed did what any eight-year-olds would do in this situation: screamed at the top of their lungs.

And then a fireball flew through the creepy shadow thing. "Lock!" The two Skellington boys shouted happily.

"Johnny, Ed, get behind me." He ordered. The two boys obeyed instantly, running around either side of the shadow. "I want you two to get back to the manor as fast as you can. There's magic there that won't let anything in to hurt you two or Sally."

"Wh-what about Mercy?"

Lock looked back at Ed. "Mercy's disappeared. We think she's the one who- never mind that now. Just get back to the manor. Now!" They both nodded somewhat fearfully and bolted for the Acid Works. Lock watched them until they were out of the gate, then turned back to the chuckling figure before him. "Oogie."

"Glad to see that you remember me." The Oogie-shadow chuckled.

Lock pulled his sword from the sheath at his waist, pointing it at the Boogeyman. "Where's Aubrey?"

He smirked. "Who?"

Growling, Lock charged at Oogie, only to go right through him and trip onto the steps. Oogie threw his head back and laughed. "You never were the brightest."

Lock wiped the blood off his cheek from the newly formed cut there. "Fuck you." He spat.

Oogie just chuckled again and shook his head, waving his hand in a scolding manner. "Ah-ah-ah, Lock. Did you forget our contract?"

Lock's yellow eyes widened. "No- you can't. Not anymore. It ended once you died!" He yelled, swiping at the air in front of him violently.

"Wanna bet, ya little brat?" Oogie sneered, his eyes narrowing. Lock froze, then let out a cry of pain and grabbed his shoulder. Smoke rose from beneath his fingers, burning through the red cloth of his long-sleeved shirt.

"Lock?" He looked up in terror.

"No! Shock, Barrel, get ba-aarrgh!" He fell onto the stairs, still clutching his arm. The two rounded the corner and froze.

"It- it can't be." Shock whispered.

Oogie turned, smirking at them. "Oh, it is."

"G-get out of here!" Lock ordered, wincing as his grip on his arm tightened. "Now!"

The two of them had barely stepped back when Oogie laughed. Shock fell to her knees, grabbing her side as Barrel grabbed his head, both of them yelling in pain. Lock groaned, letting his head fall back against the stairs. His vision was starting to cloud over and his body was going numb, except for the smoking part of his arm. The burning pain that sliced through there was the only thing that kept clearing his head. But, eventually, even that began to fade, and finally, he blacked out.

SC: Okay, I know it's short and rather bad, but it'll get better, I swear. That, and I haven't updated in a while, so I figured that I better. Plus, I'm bringing back everyone's favorite Pumpkin King back next chapter! Woot!

Ja ne  
SC


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own The Nightmare Before Christmas, Oogie's Revenge, or any character from said movie and game. I do, however, own Aubrey, the Skellington triplets, and some of the plot for this story.

--

Chapter 5

Jack's Return

_December 24_

Home. He was finally home. With a toothy grin, Skeleton Jack made his way through the Hinterlands toward Halloween Town. It was surprisingly… quiet as he made his way toward home- normally by now he would've heard the regular shrieks and clamor of the town. He paused at the gates, which were wide open, and looked in at the eerily still town. Jack frowned; there was no one in sight- not a single denizen of Halloween Town could be seen.

He put a bony hand on the gates, but pulled it back just as quickly and examined the black metal. It was dented, scratched, and twisted- Clown kept the gates in perfect condition.

Something was very, _very_ wrong here. Pushing open the gates, Jack hurried inside. "The whole town's deserted." He murmured, looking around. A sudden movement caught his eye, and he turned to see an unfamiliar skeleton standing in front of him. Jack smiled. "Hello. You must be new here, I'm Jack. Jack Skelling-" He didn't get a chance to finish as the skeleton swiped at him. He leapt back, avoiding the attack, as two more appeared. With a flick of his wrist, the Soul Robber uncurled into its more damaging form. "You… you aren't from Halloween Town, are you?"

His answer came as the skeletons lunged at him. Jack sidestepped and threw his wrist forward, sending the green, oozing whip flying toward one. It hit it squarely in the back of the skull, its sharp point going through it. The creature fell in pieces to the ground, crumbling to dust.

The other skeletons were not happy about their comrade's demise, and quickly turned on Jack. A few more snaps of the Soul Robber, and they met the same fate. "Well, that was certainly not the welcome home I expected." Jack said as he snapped the Soul Robber back around his wrist.

The sound of the alarm made him look to the steps of Town Hall. No one was cranking the cat's tail, so where was it coming from? "Testing… testing… is this thing on?!"

Jack's eyes widened. He recognized that voice all too well. "Oogie!" What had happened while he was gone?

Oogie cleared his throat over the apparently invisible speakers that he had set up. "My dearly abhorred denizens of Halloween Town, this is Oogie Boogie speaking! Today I bring you a joyous announcement."

'I seriously doubt it.' Jack thought to himself, still trying to find the source of the voice.

"First of all, in place of Jack Skellington, yours truly is now the new ruler of Halloween Town!" 'I should've known…' "And secondly, as of today, this very hour, this exact moment, I declare the town's name will be changed to Oogie Town!" He laughed sinisterly as the noise cut off with static.

Jack growled. "Ooh! That Oogie Boogie… when I find him, I'll-"

"Jack?" He stopped, looking toward the sudden movement near the steps of Town Hall. Mr. Hyde was peering out nervously. He grinned when he saw that he wasn't mistaken. "Jack, it's you! You're back!" The skeleton rushed over.

"Mr. Hyde, what's happened here? Where is everyone?"

"Hiding." The medium Mr. Hyde called, lifting the hat he was under.

"From Oogie's monsters." Finished the smallest.

Jack frowned. "Those skeletons I just fought?"

"Yes." The largest answered.

"What exactly happened while I was away?" Jack questioned.

"Oogie is back!" Mr. Hyde exclaimed.

"Bugs, bags, and all." The medium added.

"He's taken over Halloween Town!" The smallest concluded.

The largest looked up at his two smaller counterparts before turning back to Jack. "Doctor Finklestein proposed a plan for next Halloween. He said you wanted a dangerous Halloween, so we went about building you one by booby trapping the entire town. He said if we didn't, you might never come back."

"Does using skeletons and ghosts to hurt people sound like me idea of a good Halloween?" Jack questioned.

"We just wanted you to come back, Jack." The monster explained sheepishly. "Anyway, not long after, skeletons and ghosts began attacking the town! Soon it wasn't even safe to step outside."

"What about my family? And Lock, Shock, and Barrel?"

All three Mr. Hydes closed their eyes, bowing their heads. "Jack… Aubrey disappeared not long after you left."

"Lock, Shock, and Barrel have defected to Oogie Boogie!" The medium added.

"And Sally and the triplets haven't left Skellington Manor since we started building the traps." The smallest finished.

Jack dealt with the most pressing problem- namely, his missing daughter. "Aubrey _disappeared_? What do you mean?"

"The last place anyone saw her…"

"Was in the Town Hall…"

"When she went to save Mercy…"

"And no one has seen her since."

Jack frowned, puzzled. "Hm. Perhaps I should go see what I can find…"

"Be careful Jack." All the Mr. Hydes warned. Jack nodded before ascending the steps to the meeting hall. He was barely inside the doors when they snapped shut behind him, the lock clicking ominously in the silence. Jack frowned at the doors and turned back to the rest of the room, walking forward cautiously. The benches had been tossed haphazardly to the sides of the room, and the banners hanging from the ceilings had been torn to shreds. "What happened here?" He murmured, still glancing around.

His eyes caught movement on the stage and he turned quickly. A black, shadowy, ooze seemed to be slithering through the cracks in the wood. "What in the world…?" Jack asked, taking a step back. The smoky substance continued to pile on top of itself until it resembled a very familiar figure. A pair of glowing yellow eyes and a gaping mouth appeared in the shadows.

"JAAAAACK!" The Shadow-Oogie cackled.

Jack whipped the Soul Robber off his wrist. "Oogie! I should've known that you'd be here. What have you done with my family?!"

Oogie chuckled. "And ruin the surprise by telling you? Besides, you should be more worried about your precious oldest."

The Pumpkin King growled loudly. "Where is she, Oogie?! Where's Aubrey?!" The shadow merely smirked and pointed up. Jack's eyes moved slowly upward, falling on the stained glass window over Oogie's head. It took him a moment to register what he was seeing. "NO!"

The usual three happily dancing ghosts portrayed in the glass had been replaced by a very much in pain Aubrey, on her knees with her arms wrapped around herself as shadowy claws reached around her body.

"Oogie, what have you done?!"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He sneered.

"That's it! It's over, Oogie! You've gone too far this time!"

Oogie laughed. "I'd like to see you try and stop me!" Oogie blinked as the Soul Robber hit his arm, sending a chunk of shadow flying off. "That actually hurt." He said as it was quickly mended.

"Good." Jack lashed out again, but this time Oogie moved away from the green whip, summoning up a couple of ghosts to defend him. Jack sliced through them with little effort and advanced on the shadow, glaring furiously. That is, until Oogie melted into the floor and reappeared on the other side of the room. "What in the-"

"Catch, Pumpkin Puss!" Oogie cackled, tossing a pair of rather large dice at him. Jack twirled around, the Soul Robber forming a spinning green shield that reflected the dice right back at Oogie's head. Both smacked him directly in the face, sending him off-balance and spinning. Jack rushed over, whipping the Soul Robber straight through Oogie's middle.

The shadow glowered at him as it began to sink into the floor. "Beginner's luck if you ask me. Don't worry, Jack, we'll meet again."

Jack tried to hit the shadow once more before it completely disappeared, frowning as the Soul Robber bounced off the wooden floor. It retracted around his wrist. With a sigh, he turned back to the window overlooking the room, then gasped. It was completely empty. He ran back toward the stage, stopping at its edge. "Oh no… Aubrey…" Jack looked up to the ceiling as what appeared to be flakes of light fell like snow from seemingly nowhere and onto the stage. "What's this?" He murmured, sticking out a hand. One of the flakes hit it and disappeared, and Jack was surprised to find it warm. His eyes were drawn from the ceiling as a wave of magic flew through the room. Slowly, a figure began to materialize on the stage, growing more and more solid as the lights began to land on it. With a final, bright flash, the lights solidified completely, forming the body of Halloween Town's heir.

"Aubrey!" Jack leapt onto the stage and knelt down next to his daughter, raising up her torso and shaking her lightly. "Aubrey, wake up."

Making a small sound of protest, the girl's head rolled to the side slightly before her eyes opened partway. "Where…?"

Jack smiled, relieved. "Thank god, you're alright."

Crimson eyes focused on Jack's skull. "Dad? You're back?"

"Far too late, I'm afraid." Jack sighed. "Do you remember anything that happened to you?"

Aubrey put a hand on her head, closing her eyes, as Jack stood them both up. "It's all sort of blurry. I remember… fighting the monsters, then… then one of them grabbed Mercy and…" Her eyes widened. "Mercy." She turned to Jack, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Dad, Mercy brought back Oogie!"

Jack's sockets widened. "What?"

"She tricked me into thinking she was in danger and lured me into Oogie's trap."

"I can't believe this…" Jack said, putting a hand over his eyes. "Why would Mercy do something like this?"

"I don't know- but for some reason, she seems to think that OOGIE is the good guy here, and that we're the ones who did something wrong. Or, at least, she thinks me, Lock, Shock, and Barrel did."

Jack frowned. "Aubrey, I hate to have to tell you this, but Lock, Shock, and Barrel have gone back to Oogie's side."

Her crimson eyes filled with disbelief. "No… they… they wouldn't… not them. Not them."

"I'm sorry, Aubrey." He said, putting a hand on her shoulder lightly.

Aubrey pulled away from her father, burying her face in her hands. Jack gave her the space she needed as her shoulders shook. After a minute or so, Aubrey straightened up, turning back toward her father. "Are you alright?" He questioned gently.

Aubrey laughed a little. "Not in the slightest." She replied, her voice still slightly teary. "But having me sit here and drown in my sorrows isn't going to help the town. We have to- ah!" As she spoke, Aubrey walked toward the stairs, crying out as her legs gave way underneath her.

Jack moved quickly, catching her before she tumbled down the stairs. "But first, maybe we should get you to the fountain." He wrapped one of Aubrey's arms around his shoulders.

She smiled, laughing a little. "Yeah."

For someone with no muscle, Jack was surprisingly strong as he held Aubrey up, leading her down the steps of Town Hall and over to the fountain. Aubrey dipped her hand in, bringing some of the green water to her mouth. She stood up, off Jack, as the magic in the water did its job. "Have I ever mentioned I love this fountain?" She questioned, stretching out her muscles.

"Do you have enough magic to fight those monsters?" Jack asked.

Aubrey nodded. "Yeah, my magic's back to full. But who needs it?" She held out her hand, and the Morningstar (her scythe) appeared. "I've got this."

"I see I'm not the only one Dr. Finklestein has been making weapons for." Jack commented. "Before we start tracking down Lock, Shock, and Barrel, we're going to need to stop by the Witch's Shop. I need to borrow something from Hazel and Zoë." Aubrey nodded and followed him toward the shop.

Hazel and Zoë looked up as the two walked inside. "Jack! You've returned!" Zoë said, bouncing excitedly on her stool.

"Aubrey, dear, are you all right? You've been gone so long…" Hazel asked, touching the girl's cheek.

"I'm fine, Hazel." She assured the elder witch.

Jack turned to the two witches. "Is it true? The whole town is booby trapped?"

Hazel turned away. "Ohh… it's too embarrassing to talk about!"

"We were tricked by Oogie Boogie and Dr. Finklestein." Zoë sighed.

"But we'd be glad to help if there's anything you need!"

"There is, in fact." Jack said. "Did the two of you ever finish those vials to hold the fountain's water?"

"Oh, yes. Zoë, go get them." Hazel ordered. The smaller witch hopped down and ran to the back room. "We finally managed to spell the crystal to hold the magic in with the water- and they won't break." Hazel said as she took them from Zoë, handing them to Jack. There were eight in the box.

"Good. We can fill these with the fountain water and save our magic for-" All four looked up as there was a scream from the square.

"That sounded like Sally." Zoë said worriedly. Jack and Aubrey glanced at each other briefly before running outside.

"Johnny, Ed!" Jack said, seeing his sons standing at the gates of Skellington Manor.

"Dad!" The two boys rushed at their father, hugging him tightly. Jack set the box of vials to wrap his arms around them.

"Johnny, Ed, where's mom?" Aubrey asked. The boys didn't look very surprised that their sister had suddenly returned, just worried.

"Some of Oogie's baddies grabbed her."

"It's our fault." Ed lamented. "We were going to the Witch's Shop for some stuff, and we weren't watching."

"Mom shoved us back inside the gate before the skeletons could grab us-" Johnny continued.

"And they took her instead and headed for the cemetery!"

Jack knelt down to look the two in the eyes. "Boys, I want you to go back to the manor and stay there. Make sure to shut the gate behind you." He smoothed a hand back over each of their heads.

"Don't worry; dad and I will get mom back." Aubrey assured them. Both nodded and- after giving Aubrey a quick hug as well- bolted back to Skellington Manor. Aubrey groaned as she saw the gate to the cemetery- it was shut.

Now, after the little… incident involving certain parties (aka Raphael and Vanessa) a few years back, Jack had spelled the fence surrounding the cemetery- if the main gate was shut (which it never was, usually) and locked (again, a rare occurrence) then an invisible force field surrounded the many graves and crypts, making it impossible for anything to get in or out- by use of physical or magical means- until the gate was unlocked. But, for those with a higher than normal magical ability, the shielding spell appeared as a translucent, shining dome over the cemetery.

"Don't worry. All we have to do is find Clown and have him unlock the gate." Jack said, putting a reassuring hand on Aubrey's shoulder.

"Easier said than done, everyone's hiding from Oogie's monsters- including Clown." Aubrey pointed out.

Jack smiled at her. "You underestimate him." He chuckled. "Clown?"

A large cloud of smoke exploded in front of the two, and the key-keeper of Halloween Town rolled out. "Jack! Aubrey!"

"Happy reunions later, Clown." Jack said firmly, stopping the oncoming hugs. "We need you to unlock the cemetery gate for us."

The wheeling monster glanced downward. "Well, I would Jack, but… I lost it." Jack blinked- that was unlike Clown, he was normally so good with keeping up with the keys. "One of Oogie's monsters was chasing me around the square when it grabbed the key from the string and disappeared into the sewer." He pointed at the manhole near the entrance of the Witch's Shop. "I wasn't brave enough to go in after it."

"It's alright, we'll get it back." Jack assured him. "Aubrey?"

She sighed. "Great. Into the sewer we go." She pried open the manhole and, folding her wings tight, leapt in, Jack not far behind. The sewers beneath Halloween Town had gone under some attempts at modernization over the past few years.

They hadn't done very well.

Aubrey looked around at the slimy cobblestone floor, the rusted pipes, and moss covered walls. "I don't see any monsters." She said, taking a few steps forward. "Actually, I don't see anything. Shouldn't the rats be out at this hour?"

"Something's not right." Jack murmured, looking into the glowing green water surrounding the solid platform.

And then the skeletons leapt out. Hey, where else would they have been?

However, Jack- being the Pumpkin King- and Aubrey- having fought the tricky little bastards before- weren't exactly unprepared. Soul Robber and Morningstar alike went flying, slicing and dicing several of the leaping monsters before they could reach their intended targets. "I'll take that." Aubrey said, bending down and prying open a bony fist to retrieve the cemetery key from its grasp. She looked up at the sound of a crunch from behind her to see that Jack had slammed a not quite ready to go down skeleton that had leapt at Aubrey's unguarded back into the wall.

She held up the key. "Can we go now?"

55234524645

Clown couldn't have been happier when Aubrey handed him his key, zooming over to the cemetery gate and unlocking it. The shimmering shield dissolved away, leaving the two a clear path into the cemetery, which they quickly took.

--

SC: Okay, so, I've finally got the writing juices back, and am finally working on chapters again. For some stories, anyway. This just happens to be one of them- I spent most of yesterday beating Oogie's Revenge again so I could get the basic layout back in my head. Fair warning: THERE WILL BE SOME TWEAKAGE OF THE GAME'S STORY. You know, due to my lovely character add ins. Anyway, onto the fun part.

Lock, Shock, and Barrel: There's a fun part?  
SC: Are you guys still pissed at me about the Oogie thing?  
LSB: glares

SC: Yeah, guess so… hey, I always fix it, don't I?! Anyway, onto other things than me pissing characters off. As usual. As stated somewhere in the above paragraphs, I have named Aubrey's scythe 'Morningstar'. So, as to prevent confusion in later chapters, I'm going to give a list of names for the weapons I gave to the trick-or-treaters.

Lock: The Devil's Advocate

Shock: Philosopher's Ring/Iron Mace

Barrel: The Bonesledge

Okay, okay. Not my most creative names, but they're okay, right? Reviews are always appreciated!

Ja ne

SC


	6. Chapter 6

SC: So, hey. New chapter, yeah. Sorry about the seriously slow updates- college kinda does that.

Oh yeah, I also redid chapter 5, so go take a look.

Disclaimer: Don't own TNBC, do own my charries and plot changes.

--

Chapter 6

Breaking Contract

"No sign of any of Oogie's monsters yet." Aubrey murmured, the Morningstar at her side in a tight grip. "You'd think that this place would be crawling with them."

"Keep your guard up anyway. I don't trust this silence." Jack said, walking over to a familiar, doghouse shaped grave. He patted his knee, frowning when Zero was nowhere to be seen. "Strange…"

"Dad, come over here!" Aubrey called, distracting Jack from the strange disappearance of the ghost dog.

"What is it, Aubrey?" Jack asked, peering over her shoulder.

She looked back at him. "It's one of the hanging men." She said, stepping aside to let Jack see. A skeleton sat hidden behind one of the tombstones, the tattered end of its snapped noose hanging limply against the ground.

"I'm happy to see you back, Jack." The hanging man said with a rather monotonous tone in its quiet, whispery voice. "It's been rather bad here lately."

"I've seen, unfortunately." Jack replied. "What are you doing here? Where's the Hanging Tree?"

The skeleton shrugged its bony shoulders pathetically. "I don't know. When the monsters attacked us, we were all separated. I haven't seen anyone. Just hid here until the monsters stopped coming."

"But they didn't stop coming, did they?" Aubrey asked quietly.

"No." Came the mournful answer.

Aubrey looked up at Jack. "Dad, the Hanging Tree must still be in the Graveyard somewhere."

Jack nodded. "Don't worry, we'll help you find the Hanging Tree." Aubrey grabbed the noose's end and pulled the hanging man onto her back, nestling the skeleton underneath her wing.

"This way." Jack motioned, following the curved path deeper into the graveyard. It led them to the large, gnarled tree in the graveyard's back, which was as tall as some of the buildings in Halloween Town. At its base, a much smaller, more mobile tree paced worriedly.

"Hanging Tree!" Jack called, waving. The tree looked up from its pacing, and a smile broke out across its crooked mouth.

"Jack! Aubrey! You're back!"

"And we brought you a present." Aubrey said, turning slightly to reveal the skeleton lying against her back.

"Ah, there you are!" The tree said happily as Aubrey floated the skeleton back up to its branch and mended its broken noose with a few words. "I'm afraid I haven't had much luck in rounding up my missing Hanging Men." He said morosely. "With all the monsters lurking around, it isn't safe to wander."

"We haven't seen any monsters yet." Jack said.

"Most of them are deeper in the Graveyard." The Hanging Tree informed the two of them helpfully. "Unfortunately, that also seems to be where my Hanging Men are, and I'm not much of a Hanging Tree without Hanging Men."

"Well, we could try and find them for you." Aubrey said. "The graveyard isn't that big, and I doubt that those monsters are smart enough to take them too far."

Jack nodded. "A tracking orb will be a simple enough way to find them." He snapped his fingers, and the orb appeared in front of him. "_Dnif em-_" He cut short as the orb began to shake and flicker through a palette's worth of colors.

"What's happening?" Aubrey asked, watching as the spell disintegrated into thin air.

Jack's frown deepened. "Something is disrupting the flow of magic in the area. But I can't seem to find the source…"

Aubrey closed her eyes. "It's at the front of the Graveyard. It's…" Her eyes snapped open. "It's Shock. I'd recognize her magic anywhere."

Jack put a hand on her shoulder. "Aubrey, stay here. I'll handle Lock, Shock, and Barrel."

She shook her head. "No. I'm going with you. Maybe I can talk some sense into them."

Jack hesitated, but nodded. Better to have Aubrey come with him than follow him and be attacked without his being prepared. "All right. Let's get going."

Jack heard Aubrey inhale sharply as they rounded the corner. Lock leant back against fence, a ball of flickering fire cupped in his palm, the licking flames tinged with violet. "It was a fake." Aubrey muttered. "This isn't right."

"Aubrey, stay back." Jack ordered, walking forward. "Lock." He called, making the devil look up. He straightened, closing his fist and extinguishing the fire.

"Hello, Jack. Like the improvements to the town?" Lock questioned without much enthusiasm.

"What are you doing here?"

The corner of Lock's mouth twitched downward. "What do you think, Jack?" He held out one hand, the Advocate appearing in it. "I'm here to kill you."

There was a flurry of feathers as Aubrey launched herself over Jack's head and firmly planted herself between her father and fiancé. "Not without getting through me."

Lock's eyes widened. "Aubrey?" He took a step forward, raising a hand up to touch her face. When his knuckles brushed cool skin, he jumped slightly. "I can't believe it, you… you're okay?"

Aubrey smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine." Her smile faded. "Lock, what's going on? Why are you doing this?"

He winced, like he was in pain. "I… I wish I could tell you, Aubs."

"Why can't you?" She demanded, reaching out and grabbing his shoulder. Lock stiffened, and Jack managed to sense a strong, ancient magic before what appeared to be an explosion knocked the two of them away from each other.

"Aubrey! Are you alright?" Jack asked, helping her off the ground.

"Yeah, I think so." She said, rubbing her head. Her eyes traveled over to where Lock was lying, writhing in pain. "Lock!" She cried, running over. His hand was gripping the spot her hand had covered. Carefully, she pried his hand back (letting it grip hers instead) to see a pulsing black 'X' on his forearm, disappearing and reappearing with each pulse. "What the hell?" She gasped. Her fingers brushed it carefully, Lock let out a yelp pain, and Aubrey pulled back her hand, examining her fingers. It felt like she had been burned, but there was no sign of it. She glanced back at the mark, which was pulsing faster now.

And were her eyes playing tricks on her, or was the bit she had touched gone? Biting her lip, she forced her palm down on top of the 'X,' and immediately regretted it. Not only did Lock let out a howl, but pain shot up her arm, making her eyes cloud over. Whatever had put this mark there was innately evil and dark… it only took a second more for her to recognize the magic.

Oogie.

That made her very, very angry. Aubrey's eyes glowed red for a moment as she tapped into her magic and forced it down her arm and onto the mark. Gold light burst out from under her palm, and Aubrey blacked out for a moment.

When she came too, she saw Lock and Jack hovering over her worriedly. Lock smiled when she opened her eyes, and helped her sit up. "What happened?"

"I don't know. But whatever it was, it broke the contract." Lock said.

"Contract?" She asked, confused.

Lock frowned slightly. "Aubrey… do you remember, when we were still kids, you asked me, Shock, and Barrel once why we were so loyal to Oogie Boogie?"

"Vaguely." She responded. "I remember that you got really mad."

He sighed. "When the three of us died, we weren't sent directly to Halloween Town. Our souls ended up in the Hinterlands, where Oogie found us. We didn't know what we were getting into… and before we knew it, we'd signed the contract with Oogie."

"Contract?" Aubrey questioned. "What contract?"

"It… it was Oogie's way of making sure we obeyed him. It was his only way to use magic. The contract basically bound us to him- we didn't age, couldn't go against him, and had to do whatever he said. And being almost eight for three hundred years gets really old, really fast."

"Lock… I never knew." Jack said, frowning.

"We couldn't tell anyone." Lock muttered. "It was part of the contract. We were slaves. We… we thought it was over when he died. I mean, when it didn't reactivate the first time he came back, I figured we were safe."

"He wasn't really back, though." Aubrey muttered. "I saw him. He was like a ghost. But he's back for real this time, so…"

Lock nodded. "So he reactivated the contract. We didn't have any choice but to do what he told us." He scowled. "Him and Mercy, anyway."

Jack grimaced. Aubrey had already told him about Mercy bringing back Oogie, but this seemed to hit it home. "Well, it's good to have you back on our side." Lock smiled.

"Lock, you don't know where Zero is, do you?" Aubrey asked cautiously.

Jack was both relieved and disappointed when Lock shook his head. "No, sorry."

All three looked up as they heard a familiar bark. "Zero!" Jack called, relieved as the ghost dog flew out of his grave and over to his master. Lock glanced over his shoulder at the grave and blinked, picking up two halves of what appeared to be a black talisman.

"No wonder Zero couldn't come out of his grave." He said holding it up and away from him.

Aubrey peered at it. "That thing's ancient… Romanian, I think. It's supposed to hold the dead in their graves, as a ward against vampires. Who would have one here?"

Lock wrapped his hands around the metal, melting it. "Well, I hope they didn't want it back."

"Do you think that's what was causing the interference?" Aubrey questioned Jack.

Lock frowned. "Interference?"

"We were trying to track down the Hanging Men. Oogie's monsters stole them from the Hanging Tree." Jack explained. "But something is interfering with the magical flow in the graveyard, and I can't use a tracker spell to locate them."

"That's Shock's doing, I'd guess." Lock muttered. "She must have a proxy here to channel it to, because I'm the only one Oogie sent to the graveyard."

Zero barked, as if to bring himself back into attention. "Hey, I bet Zero can track the Hanging Men down!" Lock said. "He can track anything."

Jack nodded. "It's certainly worth a try. We should back to where the Hanging Tree is, so Zero can get the scent." He said before walking off. Aubrey started after him, stopping when Lock grabbed her wrist gently.

"Lock?"

He smiled crookedly and pulled her engagement out of his pocket, sliding it back on her finger. "Thought you might want this back." Aubrey smiled and kissed his cheek before running after Jack, Lock not far behind.

The Hanging Tree flinched at the sight of Lock, who grimaced, standing back from the living foliage. "It's all right, Hanging Tree." Jack assured him. "Lock is back on our side."

The Hanging Tree relaxed. "Well, _that's_ certainly good news."

Zero circled around the single Hanging Man on the tree's branch, sniffing him, making the skeleton laugh quietly. The ghost dog's head suddenly shot up, and he flew toward the other end of the graveyard, barking wildly.

"I'd say he's got the scent." Aubrey said. "But he sure isn't waiting for us."

"Aubrey, follow Zero from the air. It'll be easier to track you than him." Jack ordered- hey, the dog was transparent, glowing nose or no. Aubrey nodded, unfurling her wings.

She grimaced. "Right, no wind." She growled, running toward one of the gravestones. Jumping up, her foot came down on it and she pushed off, her wings making a hard down stroke as she did, propelling her into the air.

"Don't worry, we'll get back your Hanging Men." Jack assured the Hanging Tree before running off after Lock.

"Good luck! And be careful!" The Hanging Tree called back.

It Jack a minute to catch up with Lock and Aubrey, who had landed in a nearby tree and was busy trying to untangle the rope of a Hanging man from the twisted branches. Zero was circling the tree and barking, obviously very proud of himself. "Almost…" Aubrey muttered, tugging on a stubborn knot. It came loose, letting the skeleton fall into Lock's waiting grasp. "Got it." She chirped, hopping down.

"I'll take him back to the Hanging Tree." Lock said.

Aubrey put a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe I should. If Oogie's got this place booby-trapped too, you'll know how to get around it better." Lock grimaced slightly at the less-than-pleasant memories, but nodded and handed the Hanging Man over to Aubrey. She took off into the air again, leaving the two men alone.

"Let's go, Zero." Jack ordered. The ghost dog sniffed the air for a moment, before taking off deeper into the graveyard, yapping madly.

Lock looked around for any sign of the traps that he could remember, realizing that they hadn't gotten much farther than the-

Oh shit. "Jack, stop!" Lock yelled, grabbing the back of the Pumpkin King's shirt before he could take another step down the path they were on. Jack turned. "Lock, what-"

His unfinished question was answered a moment later when the statue in front of him began to spew fire from its forever open mouth. The two behind it did the same. "Oh."

"Yeah… we, uh, kinda had the statues rigged." Lock confessed sheepishly. "They should stop in just a second." True to his word, the flames died down, only for the fourth and fifth to spark and flame this time. Lock knelt beside the base of the first, putting his hand on a strange symbol Jack knew he had never seen there before. The flames died abruptly, and didn't start back up anywhere. "Go on, I've got this." His voice sounded strained, but Jack nodded and ran past the statues to the other side.

With a grunt, Lock curled the hand resting on the statue into a fist. A low rumble filled the air, and the stone statues seemed to shudder before exploding in a huge, fiery burst. Fragments of rock showered down on the two men as Lock stood up, coughing and brushing the ash and rock off of him. He glanced down at the rock that had melted over the statue's base, preventing any flames from coming through.

"What happened?" Aubrey asked as she ran up. "Are you okay?"

Lock nodded, picking another piece of shrapnel out of his hair. "Yeah. One of Oogie's traps… backfired." He grinned.

Aubrey rolled her eyes, recognizing a bad pun when she heard one. "Find any more of the Hanging Men yet?"

"Not yet."

"It doesn't matter if you do." All three looked around frantically as a familiar voice echoed through the Graveyard. "You'll never get out again."

"There!" Lock pointed to the top of a nearby ledge, overlooking the graves. Mercy was perched on it, between a pair of leering gargoyles, not looking happy in the slightest.

"Mercy, what are you doing?" Jack demanded.

She rolled her non-existent eyes. "Oh, cool it, dad."

"You little brat…" Lock growled, smoke collecting around the fist gripping the Advocate's handle.

Mercy didn't seem to fazed by the insult. "Lock. Why am I not surprised that you've turned traitor? _Again_."

"You can't betray someone you were never allied with in the first place." He retorted.

"Ooh, clever. Been thinking of that one for a while, have you?" She retorted. "Oogie isn't going to let any of you out of here until your souls are… poof." She made a small motion with her hand, then smirked cruelly. "By the way, the rest of those stupid Hanging Men are all yours… if you can find them." She disappeared in a flourish of black smoke.

"We have to hurry." Jack ordered, obviously shaken by his daughter's obvious turn of sides.

The last of the Hanging Men were heavily guarded by more of Oogie's sinister creations- by the time we got to the last of them, we had gone through three of the six bottles of fountain water.

"This is the last one, isn't it?" I asked, watching as Jack coaxed Zero out from under a shriveled up shrub.

"Well, let's see." Lock said, the skeleton slung across his back, "There was the one in the tree, the one that the ghosts were trying to shove into a hole, the one in the ravine, and this one. That's all five."

"Great, now we can focus on finding Shock's proxy, and getting rid of the interference here." Aubrey said, determined.

"I just hope that Shock isn't with it when we do." Lock muttered, heading back toward the center of the graveyard.

"Ah! Thank you, Lock." The Hanging Tree said as the pyromancer fixed the last Hanging Man back to his rope.

"Now we can look for mom." Aubrey said.

"Sally? She's here?" The Hanging Tree asked, concerned.

Jack nodded. "Oogie's monsters abducted her from town and came this way."

"I see… well, if it helps you any, I heard a woman singing from beneath the mausoleum. I thought that I was just hearing things."

"It has to be Sally!" Jack said. "Let's go!"

"Wait!" Lock called. The skeleton turned. "I- we can't get into the mausoleum."

Aubrey frowned. "Lock, what do you mean?"

He shook his head. "Oogie… had Barrel put up a barrier around the mausoleum. I didn't know what it was for, but I guess it was to keep Sally inside."

"What kind of barrier?" Jack questioned.

"I don't know, but it wasn't white magic. Barrel had a lot of trouble casting it." Lock frowned. "I… I think that Oogie tapped into the buried souls here in the graveyard. A lot of his monsters were smashing up the graves."

"Damn, a soul barrier?" Aubrey muttered. "We'll have to block off every single leak if we want to cut off its power."

"We'd better get started, then." Jack said. "If I know Oogie, he'll have monsters guarding every one of the supplying leaks."

"Should we split up?" Lock questioned.

Jack paused. "No. It is far too dangerous to go against Oogie's creatures alone."

Aubrey sighed, summoning the Morningstar. "This is going to take a while, isn't it?"

"That's the last one!" Aubrey cried, pointing toward the dark violet pillar that was spiraling toward the sky.

"Bout damn time." Lock growled, wiping blood off his chin. "Remind me why I thought this was a good plan!"

"You think all of your plans are good plans until they fail!" She called, laughing. He rolled his eyes and leap-frogged over a charging skeleton, sending it into a metal fence. "Stop complaining and come on! We're almost finished."

"Hurry up, you two!" Jack ordered, already halfway to the next broken headstone.

"Not my fault I wasn't built like a daddy long-legs." Lock muttered, running after the Pumpkin King. He vaulted over the metal fence and into the fray of possessed skeletons and ghosts.

"Where've you been?" Aubrey asked, a bit winded, as she fended off a pair of. "You've been missing all the fun!"

"Not on purpose, I assure you." He said, slicing a wailing ghost into halves. "Where's Jack?"

"Fixing the grave. Trying to, anyway." She corrected, seeing a severed skull flying away from the broken grave.

"You ever think that maybe Jack has some hidden anger issues?" Aubrey rolled her eyes and sliced a rather persistent skeleton's legs off.

A roar suddenly went through the monsters as they collapsed to the ground, dissolving into mist and dust. Lock and Aubrey turned to see Jack standing in front of the newly mended gravestone. "We should get to the crypt." Lock said after a moment. "The barrier should be losing power, now that it doesn't have any souls to draw from."

"Let's go." Jack said, running toward the far end of the graveyard. It only took a few minutes for the three to reach the patch of barren land in front of the giant mausoleum.

"There it is! And no sign of Oogie's creatures." Aubrey called, landing next to her father and fiancé.

"The barrier's down, too." Lock said, giving the decrepit building a cursory once over. "We should hurry and get Sally out."

However, Jack had barely taken a step toward the door when a frustrated scream cut through the air. "Why do you have to ruin everything?!" Mercy demanded from the building's roof. "We were so close…" She groaned, covering her face with her hands.

"Mercy, why are you helping Oogie?!" Aubrey yelled. "You're betraying the entire town- your family!"

"I'm the traitor? Ha, that's a laugh." Mercy growled. "You're the one who has Oogie's key!" Aubrey gasped sharply. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Whatever Oogie's told you is a lie, Mercy." Lock yelled. "That key was never his. It belongs to the Skellingtons!"

Mercy frowned, but then waved it off. "Yeah, cuz I'm gonna believe you. I can't let you into this crypt."

Jack stepped forward. "Mercy, your mother is in there, with god only knows what."

"Yeah, I know." Mercy said, a bit sadly. "But she's safe, and if you get in there, then you'll only put her in danger."

"Did Oogie tell you that? You can't trust him, Mercy."

"Enough of this. You aren't getting in here, and that's that." She snapped her fingers, and the ground began to quake.

"She's opening the geysers again!" Lock said, watching the gravestones begin to crack at their bases. "Jack, go!"

The skeleton nodded and leapt toward the door, managing to get inside just before the violet barrier rose again. "No!" Mercy shrieked. "Do you have any idea what you've done?!"

"I'm really hoping that the answer's something along the lines of 'gotten you in serious trouble'." Lock said. Mercy stomped her foot against the roof.

"You are so dead." She snarled before disappearing. The rumbling grew worse, cracking the ground open around the two. Skeletons began to claw their way to the surface, while ghosts began to pour out past them.

"You know, I'm thinking that the crypt would've been safer." Lock noted.

SC: OH MAH GAWD DONE. Um, yeah. If anyone is still reading this, I'd really appreciate a review. Like, one would make my day.

Ja ne  
SC


	7. Chapter 7

SC: Okay, here's to hoping that this one finishes faster than last time.

Disclaimer: Don't own TNBC, do own my charries and plot changes.

--

Chapter 7

The Crypt Creeper

Jack looked around the crypt warily. Nothing seemed to have changed- coffins lined the walls, covered with cobwebs and dust. Though he didn't remember quite as _many_ spiders being in here…

"Sally?" Jack called, stepping over a particularly large spider. Was it just him, or was that pattern familiar…? "Sally?"

"Jack!"

Jack's empty eye sockets widened at the of his wife's voice. "Sally!" He cried as he ran further into the tomb. The door leading from the sarcophagi room slammed shut behind him, but he hardly had a chance to worry about it before he caught sight of his wife. Sally was entangled in the threads of a giant spider web hanging near the top corner of the large room.

"Jack, you have to run! It's a trap!" Sally pleaded.

"I'm not leaving you." Jack protested, only to look up toward the ceiling as a familiar scuttling sound reached his ears- a sound like a hundred spider legs all moving at once. The sound intensified, but also dimmed, as though the amount of legs was diminishing, but the size was…

Jack's thoughts were cut off as something large and hairy and many-legged dropped from the ceiling in front of him. Only one thought passed through Jack's head

_'Oh no, not Fluffy.'_

Yes, the spider in front of him was a near perfect copy of the beast Shock had created years ago, the perpetrator of the infamous 'spider incident.' And it was alive. Again.

'Oogie must have forced Shock to revive it.' Jack said, looking over the spider. 'But she didn't to her best work.'

And it was true- this newly reborn Fluffy seemed to be put together shakily, at best. Every so often, something seemed to move under the surface of its skin- another spider, perhaps? 'That must be it- she reconstructed him using hundreds of spiders… but she doesn't seem to have healed the wound that Lock inflicted…' Jack smiled, inwardly praising Shock for her cleverness. Whipping the Soul Robber off of his wrist, Jack sent the now-pointed weapon straight for Fluffy's face. It must have caught the spider off guard, because it didn't move as the slimy green weapon sunk in between its eyes. It let out a shriek of pain and… split in half? And in half again, and again, until there were hundreds of mini-Fluffys running around the room. Jack did the logical thing- started stomping. Half the room was clear when the spiders began to swarm together again to form Fluffy, but only half as large this time around.

'Looks like I was right,' Jack dodged a blow from Fluffy, who didn't look very pleased at his sudden decrease in size. 'It's not just a simple growth spell this time. All of those smaller spiders are being bound into a larger form… if I can break it apart enough times, I should be able to kill them all.'

Fluffy lunged at Jack, pincers snapping at the Pumpkin King's bony waist. Jack dodged nimbly out of the way, whipping the Soul Robber at one of its many hairy legs. It snapped off and the spider stumbled, barely catching itself on the more mossier stones of the floor.

"Is that the best you can do, _Fluffy_?" Jack taunted. The spider hissed and reared back on its hind legs before charging at Jack. There was a screech as Jack stepped aside again and Fluffy smacked into the wall Jack had been standing in front of. The impact was enough to jar the spider to pieces again. Jack quickly leapt around the room, killing the smaller, less dangerous arachnids as quickly as he could.

Finally, there was only a single 'Fluffy' left, the size of a large tarantula. Now he knew why that spider's markings looked so familiar in the coffin room. Jack whipped his arm forward, and the final Fluffy died with a 'squish'. Jack curled the Soul Robber back around his wrist, striding across the room to Sally. He quickly ripped through the thick strands of webbing cocooning his wife.

"Oh, Jack!" Sally cried, throwing her arms around him.

Jack gladly hugged his wife back. "Sally, I'm so glad to see you. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Jack." She assured him. "The boys?"

"A little rattled, but fine." Jack said, looking at the ruin of the web that held Sally, then frowned and moved back over to the cocoons remains. "What is this?" He murmured, reaching into a small sack of webbing he hadn't noticed before. His bone fingers easily tore through the sack, and the tips brushed wood. "No… he couldn't have…" Jack groaned as he ripped the webbing away.

"Jack? What- the Christmas Town door!" Sally gasped.

"Oogie has taken this too far." Jack growled. "Come on- Lock and Aubrey are waiting outside."

"Aubrey? She's all right?"

Jack nodded, an arm around his wife's shoulders as he led her out of the crypt. "So is Lock- he was under Oogie's curse, I'll explain more once we're safely back in town."

834508340958

"Mom!" Aubrey cried, running over to embrace Sally as the two exited the crypt.

"The monsters?" Jack asked Lock.

Lock shook his head. "Disappeared about five minutes ago. One minute we're up to our necks in Oogie creatures, the next they're all dust."

"It must've been because you destroyed Shock's proxy." Lock said. "I'm sure Oogie'll find another way to channel the magic he needs here, but for now it's safe here. We should probably get back to Hanging Tree and all get out of here."

"Good idea." Aubrey said, coming down the steps with Sally. "Let's go."

08490583049

"Shock, are you okay?" Barrel asked as she doubled over.

"Fluffy… it's gone." Shock said, sounding surprised. "Jack's back- he killed it."

"Jack?" Barrel asked, grinning a little. They both looked up as a roar shook the tunnel. "Oogie sounds pissed."

"I'm not surprised. This hasn't been a good day for him." Shock said, grinning wickedly.

Barrel snickered, kissing Shock for a brief moment. "Come on, Shock, let's get some rest." He curled an arm around her waist and let her down the hall, away from the screams of fury that echoed through the lair.

--

SC: Blah, it's short, but I've done it! New chapter in… well, less than last time. Later!

Ja ne  
SC


	8. Chapter 8

SC: Okay, here's to hoping that this one finishes faster than last time.

Disclaimer: Don't own TNBC, do own my charries and plot changes.

Chapter 8

The Not-so-Good Doctor

"Mom!" Ed and Johnny yelled, running outside to bury their faces in their mother's dress. Johnny was the first to notice the pyromancer who had his arm around Aubrey's waist.

"Lock?" He asked warily. "Are you…?"

"Back on our side, squirt." Aubrey said, grinning. The twins let out a whoop of joy and tackled/hugged Lock to the ground.

Lock laughed. "Glad to see you guys too." Lock sat up suddenly, looking at the two seriously. "Hey, do you two still have it?"

The twins nodded. "Yeah, it's safe."

"It? What are you three talking about?" Jack questioned.

Ed and Johnny looked over at each other before running inside the manor. They returned a minute later with a steel box. "It's… well, see for yourself." Ed said, lifting the lid.

Aubrey recoiled a bit. "Is that… a brain?"

"Yeah, but whose brain it is is more important." Lock said. "When Oogie 're-enlisted' me, Shock, and Barrel, I was getting these two out of the acid works, and they had that." He motioned to the brain-in-the-box.

It took a moment for the reality to dawn on Jack and Sally. "That brain belongs to Dr. Finklestein?" Jack gasped.

"That's impossible, the Doctor has been running the town." Sally said.

"Yeah, with an Oogie monster brain in his head." Johnny said.

"We saw it! Mercy switched the brains. That's why he's been making all the monsters for Oogie!"

Aubrey looked in the box again. "Which means that the most brilliant mind in at least half of the Holiday Worlds is under Oogie Boogie's control."

Jack shook his head. "I never would've imagined Oogie would sink this low."  
"Really? I would." Lock scoffed. Aubrey pushed him a little. "Look, whatever the… the thing in the doc's head is, we have to get it out and put his real brain back in."

"How? I doubt he's just going to let us pop his head open and switch the brains back." Aubrey asked.

"We may have to fight the doctor." Jack said.

"How hard can that be?" Lock asked.

"Lock… do you REMEMBER the robot?" Aubrey questioned.

"Oh… yeah… shit, this is gonna be hard." Lock groaned.

"Way to be optimistic, Lock." Aubrey said dryly.

Lock shook his head. "It's not like we can get in, anyway. The gates to Finklestein's lab have been locked since Oogie took over."

Sally smiled slyly, and reaching into a pocket of her dress, revealed a black key. "The doctor knew that I had a second key- but I don't suppose that Oogie's monster would."

"Go mom!" Johnny grinned as Sally handed the key to Aubrey.

"You two stay here with your mother." Jack ordered, taking the box from Ed. Johnny looked disappointed, but Ed nodded.

"Be careful." Sally said, wringing her hands.

Jack nodded, hugging her tightly before heading back to the town square, Lock and Aubrey behind him. "How are we going to take down the doc? Whatever that thing in his head is has to be just as smart as him, if it's using his equipment to make those monsters." Lock shook his head. "This isn't going to be good."

"I don't know… but we'll think of something, we always do." Aubrey offered.

"Somehow, Aubs, that really isn't as reassuring as it should be." He said as they reached the locked gate to the Acid Works. Jack slid the key into the heavy lock, turning it with a dull 'tunk.' The gate screeched open, revealing the metal bridge that led over the venomous green pool below.

"Keep on your toes- who knows what kind of monsters we'll run into here." Jack ordered, making his way inside.

A high pitched cackle filled the air. "What the hell?" Lock looked around, his eyes widening as he realized what it was. "Watch out!" He ordered, pulling Aubrey out of the way of what appeared to be a black and white missile zoomed by.

"What- what is that?" The "missile" turned in midair, cackling madly. "Is- is that…?"

"One of the old Christmas toys."

"I thought all of them were destroyed." Aubrey said, looking at Jack, who was glowering at the floating doll.

"So did I."

Lock shook his head. "But we trashed them in the junkyard- Doctor F. might've just had them rebuilt."

There was a clean 'snick' nose, and the doll fell to the ground, headless. Jack and Lock looked at Aubrey, who was suddenly holding her scythe, the chained blade retracting to the staff. "What? That thing always creeped me the hell out."

"Let's just hope there aren't many more of them." Jack said, proceeding further in. Down the pathway to the laboratory, Jack wasn't surprised to see Igor hovering midway down the path. The hunchback seemed to spot them and scurried down the path.

"Master says he is not to be disturbed." Igor mumbled, stepping in the way of the three.

"Igor, the doctor isn't himself. We have to go up to his lab to stop him." Aubrey said. Igor shook his head, obviously terrified.

Lock grinned. "Igor, if we get you some bone biscuits, will you let us through?"

Igor looked down at his stomach guiltily. "Igor is hungry…"

"Bone biscuits it is. Let's go to the Witches' Shop and get a box." Lock said, leading the way back out of the acid works.

The three were immediately spotted by Clown and Mr. Hyde. "Jack, you have to hurry! The Witches' Shop is under attack!"

"What? By who?"

Lock looked up as a bolt of lightning shot down from the sky in the general area of the shop. "Shock!" He cried, running toward the shop, Aubrey and Jack on his heels.

"Well, I was wondering how long it was going to take to get your attention." Shock scoffed, hovering high off the ground on her broom. Jack noted that, while there was a great amount of damage to the surrounding area, the shop itself seemed to be relatively unharmed.

"What the hell are you doing here, Shock?" Lock growled.

"Finishing your job, what else?" She said bitterly. Raising her hand, she snapped her fingers. Aubrey jolted as a barrier rose behind her, cutting them off from the square, and across the door of the shop.

"Lock, look out!"

The pyromancer leapt out of the way as a pair of translucent, ghostly hands began to creep around his legs. A swarm of ghosts suddenly appeared out of the ground. "Have fun." Shock said, waving as she flew off.

"She's heading toward the lab!" Aubrey called, able to see more clearly from her vantage point in the air.

"Damn it, where are all these things coming from?" Lock demanded, slashing through one ghost, only to have another two take its place.

Jack sent the Soul Robber through the heads of four ghosts, watching as they disappeared and reappeared again. In the brief moment they left his line of sight, he spotted something interesting. "Aubrey! The ghost with the crown! Destroy it!"

"Crown?" She asked, looking at the mess of monsters below her. She spotted it, hovering away from the rest, its red and gold crown standing out like a beacon. "Got it!" Holding the scythe off to her side, she dove down at the ghost, bringing her weapon around and slicing through it. It let out a shriek of pain as it dissipated into the air. The other ghosts quickly followed at Lock and Jack's hands, disappearing for good. The barriers around their exits disappeared, and all three rushed inside the shop.

"Hazel, Zoe, are the two of you all right?" Jack asked the two witches.

Hazel nodded. "We're all right, Jack. Shock didn't hurt us. In fact, she told us as long as we stayed inside, nothing would happen to us."

Jack let out a relieved sigh. "Good." It seemed that Shock, like Lock, wasn't too thrilled with being forced to work for Oogie. "Zoe, we need a box of bone biscuits."

The smaller witch hopped off her stool, rummaging around underneath her counter. "Here you go, Jack, our last box."

"Thank you." Jack said, taking the box and leaving. Aubrey stopped Lock just outside the shop.

"Lock, that mark on your arm earlier… do Shock and Barrel both have one?"

Lock nodded. "Yeah. It's how Oogie used to control us. If we didn't do what he wanted, it would start to hurt. Why?"

"Where is Shock's?"

"Aubrey, why-"

"Lock, please. Where's Shock's mark?"

Lock frowned. "Her left side, at the bottom of her ribs. Aubrey, what are you planning to do?"

"I… I think that maybe I can break her contract, like I did yours." She explained. "The only problem is, I don't know how I did it the first time." She said, looking down at her hands.

Lock smiled and grabbed her hand. "We'll figure it out. Let's catch up with Jack."

She nodded and let him tug her along. The three found their way back into the Acid Works, where Igor was waiting nervously. "Here you go, Igor. Now, will you let us through?" Jack questioned, handing Igor the snacks. Igor nodded, eagerly digging into the box of biscuits.

Aubrey stretched her wings. "I'll go check out the lab- maybe I can surprise him."

Igor dropped the biscuits suddenly and latched onto Aubrey's legs. "No! Don't go near!"

Caught off balance, Aubrey fell backwards, the hunchback still clinging to her legs. "H-hey! Igor, what's wrong with you?"

They all looked up, startled, as there was a loud sound above them- like a bug getting caught in a bug zapper. A bolt of lightning had just fried a murder of crows that had flown above the lab. "Damn. What the hell was that?"

"Master has installed security." Igor whimpered, helping Aubrey back up to her feet.

"No kidding." Aubrey said, her voice shaking. "Thanks, Igor. If I'd flown up there…"

Lock grimaced. "I didn't have any idea about this. Guess Oogie's smarter than he looks." He looked around. "There has to be a power source somewhere."

"It could be anywhere in town." Aubrey said. "We could look until Christmas and we'd never find it."

"Or maybe not." Jack said, looking at the gates that surrounded either side of the path. The doors leading to the junkyards were barricaded by wooden planks. "Stand back." He ordered, stepping between the two doors. Flames licked up Jack's pinstripes, turning them to the patched tan pants and a maroon shirt of his Pumpkin King form. Throwing his arms out, flames exploded from his body and decimated the barricades.

"Good job, Jack." Lock said, letting Aubrey step out from behind him (as he was a bit more fireproof than her).

The skeleton, back to normal, straightened out his jacket. "Thank you, Lock. Now, we should split up and investigate the rest of the area and find that generator. Aubrey, you and Lock check out that side of the junkyard. I'll go this way."

They nodded and pushed open the door.

"I think we may have found it." Lock said, looking at the many gates with electricity arcing through them.

"Maybe if I stay really low, I can just fly over?" Aubrey murmured, looking at the height of the gates.

Lock looked less than thrilled with the idea. "Let's save that for the last resort. For now…" He pointed a finger at a ball of junk and, muttering a levitation spell, whipped it toward the first gate. Having smashed one of the pylons, the electricity stopped flowing, and the two were free to go through.

Aubrey shook her head. "Is that your solution to everything? Smash it?"

Lock grinned- it was hard to take her scolding seriously when she was laughing. "It's working, isn't it?"

After smashing the next two gates into rubble, they came across a giant, sparking generator. "Guess this is it." Aubrey said, carefully examining it out of the range of the sparks. "Let's see, there's got to be an 'off' switch here somewhere…" She muttered.

Lock, on the other hand, was preparing _his_ way of shutting down the field. Cocking his arm back, a large fireball appeared in his hand. "Aubs, I'd get back if I were you." He said before (after making the ball even bigger) tossing it at the machine.

"Aha- wait, why?" Aubrey said, turning to see the fireball. "Fuck- _draug_!"

The machine, predictably, exploded as Lock's flames engulfed it, and was left as a smoldering pile of half liquefied metal. There was a loud clanking as Aubrey dropped her makeshift shield and turned to glare at her fiancé.

"What?" Lock asked.

"Next time you want to blow something up, give me a little more warning so I don't almost get blown up with it!" She growled, poking his chest with a claw.

Lock smiled sheepishly. "Eh heh. I'm sorry?"

Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Let's just go find my dad and head inside. With our luck, he's probably got a backup somewhere."

"I said sorry!" Lock called, chasing after her.

Aubrey sighed. "I know, just… seriously, Lock, blowing shit up is NOT the way to solve all your problems."

"But it usually works. I love you."

"I love you too. Now, come on, let's go fix Doctor Finklestein." She said, heading out of the junkyard.

Surprisingly, Jack was already there waiting for them. "Dad?"

"I saw the explosion. I figured that the two of you had located the generator." Jack explained, looking pointedly at Lock, who just grinned. "Let's get inside, I want to stop the Doctor from making Oogie's creations as soon as possible."

Pushing open the doors, the trio realized that this wasn't going to be as easy as they thought. "Shock? Why am I not surprised…" Lock muttered, glaring up at the witch.

"You sure kept me waiting." Shock said, floating on her broom near the top of the tower.

"Well, you sure kept yourself busy. Never knew you were into home renovations." Aubrey snapped back, her wings flaring out a bit. "The death trap's a bit over the top."

Shock smirked. "Well, if the obligatory witty banter's out of the way, I'd like to just kill you and get it over with." The witch flipped the lever on the large machine, which began to sputter and churn out giant iron spheres, which made their way down the ramp toward the trio.

Fortunately, they seemed to just disappear about a quarter of the way from the bottom. "Great, how do we get past those?" Lock muttered.

Aubrey looked up. "We go around." She said, leaping off the ground.

"Oh please, do you _really_ think I wouldn't have thought of that?" Shock asked, sounding a little insulted. Lock and Jack didn't miss her wine as Aubrey slammed into the previously invisible barrier, her body crackling with magic-infused lightning as she fell.

Lock caught her before she could hit the floor. "You had to know that wasn't going to work." He admonished.

"Figured it was worth a try." Aubrey muttered, holding her head. "Didn't see you coming up with a plan."

Lock paused, then smirked. "Actually, I just might have one."

SC: Aaand because I'm mean, Imma leave you there. Don't worry, the next chapter's in the works, and it'll be up before the first. I swear.

Ja ne

SC


	9. Chapter 9

SC: Day late, sorry guys! Had some internet issues when I got back to good ol' Texas, but it's good now. Still a faster update than I usually give.

Disclaimer: Do not own, don't sue, etc., etc.

Chapter 9

The Not-So-Good Doctor II

Shock tapped her fingers at the end of her broom impatiently as Lock, Aubrey, and Jack huddled down at the bottom of the tower, presumably plotting a way to beat her death trap. _Come up with something good, guys._ She pleaded to herself, even as the mark on her side burned at her treacherous thoughts.

Movement caught her eye suddenly as the trio charged the ramp. _No, no, no!_

"That the best you got?" She taunted, sincerely hoping that it wasn't. She was almost relieved to see that they were dodging the balls, ducking into nooks and leaping over them. It wasn't until she realized that Aubrey had run out of room to fly over the balls did she panic, unable to stop the sphere hurtling toward the winged girl. Her scream of warning cut off in her throat as the mark activated, stopping her from saving the heir to Halloween Town's throne.

What happened next confused her greatly for several moments- the sphere hit Aubrey, but rather than crushing her flat, it phased through her- or, rather, she phased through it.

The sound of wings behind her made Shock realize that Lock and Jack had just been a distraction, and she turned to see a very annoyed looking Aubrey. Glancing down at the barrier, she saw that a rather large hole had been eaten through. "Clever." She said, returning her gaze to Aubrey.

"Thanks. Now, do me a favor and hold still." Shock didn't have time to contemplate that odd request before Aubrey lunged at her, pressing her hand to the 'X' etched into her side as they fell on the platform the machine rested on. Burning pain shot through the witch, and with it came a strange, _wonderful_ sense of freedom. Having two such conflicting emotions running through her at once was too much for her brain to handle at the moment, and she passed out from the strain.

_Rewind, Aubrey's POV_

Lock's plan was surprisingly plausible- I love him, and I know it's mean to say that, but it's true. Most of his plans are… well, kinda stupid. This one actually had a pretty good chance of working.

I cast an invisibility spell on my real body created a magical copy of myself to keep Shock from seeing what I would really be doing while the copy, Lock, and Jack fought their way past her trap.

Hovering was never my strong suit, and it was taking a lot of effort to stay in one place while I vented all the magic I could spare toward the barrier. Finally, a small hole that I probably couldn't have fit a finger through appeared in it, and it was as good as done. Having something to focus on now, I ripped the barrier open further, until the gap was wide enough for me to comfortably fit through.

Things almost got really complicated then- Shock made a choking sound, and I looked over to see that my dummy had been hit with one of the spheres. Since it didn't have any real substance, it just passed through it, but now I was busted, and I wasn't about to let Shock get away. Launching myself up, I gave up on the proxy and the invisibility spell as Shock turned around, surprised to see me. I saw her look down at the barrier, and at the hole, before she looked back up at me.

"Clever." She complimented- it was the first genuine thing I think she'd said since we'd come in.

"Thanks." I said, shifting subtly in my preparation to knock us both out of the air. "Now, do me a favor, and hold still."

Her confusion gave me all the time I needed to tackle us both to the top floor of the lab, and I pressed my hand against the bottom of her ribs- I knew I had the right place when my arm went numb from the dark magic that was trying to shove me away. Whatever happened last time didn't seem to be happening, but I forced myself to find that power source again. Heat welled up in my chest, and then shot down my arm, making it glow gold. Light surged from beneath my hand, and I heard Shock cry out in pain, then slump back to the ground.

I stood up and wobbled over to the machine, pulling the lever to shut it off. It sputtered to a stop, and I sat down heavily, leaning against the wall to stay up.

_Back to 3__rd__ Person_

It was quite the relief for Jack and Lock when the spheres stopped rolling down the ramp, and the two made their way to the top floor, where Shock was laying unconscious, and Aubrey looked like she was on her way to following. "Hey, look. I didn't pass out this time." She joked weakly, letting Lock pull her to her feet and leaning on him to stay that way.

He kissed her temple, murmuring, "You did good," as Jack helped the stirring Shock sit up.

"What happened? What did you do?" Shock asked, looking over at Aubrey.

"She broke your contract." Lock explained. "Just like she did mine."

Shock's eyes widened. "It's over? You mean it?" Lock nodded, and Shock let out a cry of joy. "Thank god! Oogie can go to hell!"

"Nice to be able to say it again, isn't it?" Lock grinned.

Shock laughed and nodded, but sobered up quickly. "Now we just need to free Barrel…" She muttered, obviously worried about her boyfriend.

"Don't worry, he's top priority after we get Doctor Finklestein's brain back in his head." Aubrey said, stepping away from Lock.

Shock nodded understandingly, but her expression turned to panic as the elevator began to come down from the lab. "Hide!" She hissed. "He might not realize I'm not under Oogie's control anymore!" The three nodded and ran down the ramp a ways, ducking into Sally's old room just before the elevator touched down.

"What was all that racket?" The wheelchair-bound doctor demanded.

"Sure _sounds_ like Doctor Finklestein." Lock muttered. Aubrey rolled her eyes and put a hand over his mouth.

"I was just testing the machine." Shock lied easily, the contempt in her voice barely hidden.

The Doctor observed her for a few moments before letting out a 'hmph.' "Well keep it down! These procedures are _delicate_." He said, maneuvering back into the elevator. "I'll be taking dinner in my lab tonight."

"Sure thing." Shock answered, uninterested. Only when the noise of the elevator had stopped did the bedroom door creak open and the three stepped out.

"That was… weird." Aubrey said, looking up toward the lab. "It sounds and acts _just_ like him."

"It basically is him." Shock said. "Don't ask me how, but Oogie managed to pretty much copy the Doc's brainwaves down to a 'T.' Just, ya know, more evil and loyal to him."

Lock paused. "So, basically, he's _exactly_ like the real Doc?"

"Isn't that what I just sa- wait, I know that look." Shock said, frowning. "What are you planning?"

"I think I know a how we can 'distract' the Doc while we switch the brains back. C'mon, we gotta go talk to Sally." Lock said, running down the ramp.

Aubrey smiled as he realized what he was planning. "He's just on a roll today." She laughed, hopping over the railing and gliding down. Shock grabbed her broom and followed her, while Jack headed after Lock.

_At Skellington Manor_

"-so if he's basically got all the same habits as Doctor Finklestein, I pretty much figure that he won't be smart enough to figure out that you put Deadly Nightshade in the soup."

"That's a very good plan, Lock." Sally agreed. "I'll start making the soup right away- the faster we fix the doctor, the better. Aubrey, would you mind coming to help me?" She said, walking into the kitchen.

"Sure mom." She said, hopping off the back of the couch and following Sally into the kitchen. As the two began pulling ingredients out of the cabinets, Aubrey glanced over at the ragdoll. "You're really worried, aren't you mom?"

Sally blinked, surprised, then smiled sadly. "I suppose I am. Doctor Finklestein is the closest thing I have to a father, after all."

Aubrey smiled a little. "Wouldn't have caught you saying that about him a few years ago."

"Things have changed since then." Sally chided. There was silence as the two went back to work on brewing the poisonous soup.

Aubrey glanced over at Sally as she grabbed the jar of Deadly Nightshade out of the cupboard to see the ragdoll gazing out the window with a distant look on her face. "Doctor Finklestein isn't the only one you're worried about, is he? You're worried about Mercy, too."

Sally sighed. "I am very worried about her. I don't know why she'd do something like this. It just seems so unlike her. I can't help thinking that Oogie's done something to her, to make her behave this way."

"That would explain why she thinks he's the good guy here." Aubrey conceded. "I just wish it would be as easy to fix her as it hopefully will be to fix Doctor Finklestein."

Sally hugged her daughter. "So do I, sweetheart. Now, let's get this soup finished."

"Aye, aye captain."

"Do you really think this is going to work?" Shock asked as they crossed the square back to Doctor Finklestein's lab.

"No idea." Lock confessed. "I know that Mercy must've used this same tactic on the real doc, so the monster brain might be on to us. On the other hand, it's pretty likely it still thinks you're working for Oogie, so it won't think about it."

"It didn't even notice us taking down its security system." Aubrey pointed out. "It's probably so focused on making Oogie's monsters, it doesn't pay attention to much else."

"Well, let's cross our fingers." The witch muttered.

Lock looked over at Aubrey. "You ready?"

"Yep, just give me the brain in a box." Jack handed her the box.

"Be careful." He warned.

Aubrey smiled. "I know, I will be. Meet you up there." She said to Shock, heading off to the back of the lab.

Shock shifted the bag slung over her shoulder. "Time to give the doctor his dinner."

"Put those acting skills of yours to good use." Lock said, patting her on the back.

Jack put a hand on her shoulder. "We'll be right behind you, Shock."

Shock nodded and shoved open the doors, walking into the kitchen and rummaging through the cupboards for a bowl.

_Let's hope this works._ The witch thought as she waited impatiently for the elevator to reach the top floor of the tower.

The gate screeched open as the elevator stopped at the lab, and Shock was careful not to slop any soup out of the bowl. They were going to need as much time as they could manage to pull that parasite out of the Doctor's head and put the real brain back in it.

If the doctor could be saved, this was their only chance to do it.

"You're late." The familiar voice snapping at her pulled Shock out of her thoughts. She scowled, walking over and plunking down the bowl in front of him. _It doesn't know_, she repeated in her head, _it doesn't know that I'm not under Oogie's control. It doesn't know…_

She almost sighed in relief when the soup disappeared down the doctor's throat. She counted her steps to the door, getting to seven before snoring filled the room. Without hesitation, she ran over to the window, pushing it open. Aubrey landed inside, the box held safely in her hands. "Guess it worked." She noted, speed walking over to the doctor and setting the box down on the wheeled cart next to the elevator. "What is all of this?" She asked, looking at the machinery surrounding the wheelchair bound man.

"No idea, but Lock and Barrel spent a week hauling up parts for it." Shock shrugged, sending the elevator back down to get Jack and Lock.

Aubrey touched one of the saw blades resting above the doctor's head, wincing as it cut her finger neatly. "Real friendly looking. Let's pop his head open and get that thing out of there." Her eyes widened as she took a good look at the doctor. "Oh no… Shock? Please tell me that isn't what I think it is."

"What? Please tell me things didn't just get complicated." Lock said, coming out of the elevator.

"Things just got a lot more complicated." Aubrey muttered, turning the doctor around to reveal the thick black rune burned into his forehead.

"Oh f-" Shock bit her knuckle to stop from cursing. "That's one of Oogie's marks. He used to put it up whenever he didn't want us going somewhere."

"I don't suppose either of you know how to break through it?" Jack asked, crossing his arms.

Lock and Shock both shook their heads. "We were just kids. We didn't have the magic to fight him." Lock muttered, tapping the mark. He winced as black lightning curled up around his hand, yanking it back. "And apparently still don't." He muttered, cradling his hand to his chest.

"How is that even possible, that he's gotten stronger while he was dead?" Aubrey demanded to no one in particular. "You killed him when we were kids."

"It must have been Raphael." Jack murmured, crossing his arms. "Oogie's ashes would have been mixed in with the ashes of the door. When Raphael tried to resurrect the doorway, he brought Oogie back with the key's power."

"I'm… slightly sickened by the thought that Oogie's running off of my powers." Aubrey said, scrunching her nose just slightly. Lock patted her shoulder.

"Shock? You've broken through Oogie's barriers before. Think you can manage this one?" Lock questioned.

"Maybe. If he's using the key's power to do this, then I don't know if I can." Shock said. "I'll try, though." Holding out a hand, Shock winced as the black lightning that had attacked Lock wrapped around her arm. "Nngh- come on, come on." She growled through gritted teeth as she fought her magic down her arm and into the mark. Lock and Jack caught her as she stumbled back. "Did I get it?" She asked dazedly.

"You got it." Lock said, watching as the rune floated away like smoke. "Let's hurry."

Aubrey pulled the top half of Doctor Finklestein's skull up, grimacing as she saw the toxic green brain. "Ooh, that's…"

"Nasty." Shock finished, standing on her own. "Someone yank that thing out."

Lock took a step toward the unconscious Doctor. "Why don't I just burn it out?"

Shock grabbed his arm. "Because you could seriously damage Doctor Finklestein's head. Is fire your solution to everything?"

"Yes, it is." Aubrey said. "Move, I'll take the stupid thing out." She said, reaching for the monster brain. Her hands were mere inches away when red eyes snapped open and a low growl sounded. "What the-"

"Thought you could poison me, did you?" The voice came out of Doctor Finklestein's mouth, but it was twisted and distorted. All four jumped back, away from the iron console surrounding the doctor as he sat up and his fists slammed on the controls, activating the buzz saw blades hovering above their heads.

"Jeezus!" Lock yelped, barely leaping out of the way as a saw came across the space where his neck had been a moment before. "Shock, can't you knock him back out or something?"

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" The witch snapped back. "That stupid brain has some kind of ward up! Jack, Aubrey, you two have the long range weapons, try and yank his head back open!"

"Maybe you'd better handle that one, dad." Aubrey said, slicing through an approaching blade with the Morningstar. "I think I'd do more harm tha- aah!" She cried out in pain as a small, metal sphere popped up in the saw's place and shot a laser through her wing.

"Aubrey!" Lock sliced through the laser's mount, and it fell to the floor next to its new friend the broken saw. There was a clean, smoking hole near the top edge of Aubrey's wing. "You okay?"

"It hurts, but I'm fine." She said, her fist clenching around her scythe's handle. "I'll deal with it later, for now, let's get some of those defense systems off of Shock and dad's back."

Lock grinned and held up his sword. "Let's go break some stuff."

Jack wasn't faring well against Doctor Finklestein's machinery- the parasite was operating the blades and claws and lasers with deft precision, and wasn't giving the skeleton any openings.

A flash of metal beside him caught his eyes, and a claw and a laser had suddenly made their new home on the floor. "Need a hand?" Lock asked, the Devil's Advocate's thin blade stained with oil.

"I'd appreciate it." He said with a nod, lashing out at the blade coming toward them with the Soul Robber. The blade ground to a halt as the gooey weapon destroyed its mechanism. Jack glanced across the room to see Aubrey and Shock dealing with the menagerie of weapons focused on them.

"Oh, forget this!" Shock growled as a rotating claw knocked her against the wall, her hat falling to the floor. "_Fulgar_!"

Electricity crackled around the machinery as Shock's spell hit it, traveling from the claw she used as a lightning rod all the way to the control panel… and Doctor Finklestein's fingers. The doctor jerked in his chair before slumping down, unconscious.

"Hurry, switch the brains back before he wakes up again!" Jack ordered, reaching through the now fried machines to pull open the Doctor's skull. The Oogie-brain was smoking and shuddering in his skull.

"No chances this time." Lock raised his arm and thrust it forward skewering the brain and flipping it out of its stolen resting place. Aubrey carefully replaced the doctor's real grey matter in his skull, and Jack flipped the lid down.

There was a moment of tense silence. "Is it too late?" Aubrey whispered, looking up at Jack.

"I…" Jack hung his head. The Pumpkin King looked back up as Doctor Finklestein let out a low moan, sitting up in his chair and holding his head. "Doctor Finklestein!"

"Ohh, my head… Jack? What are you doing back so soon?" The mad scientist asked, frowning.

"Grandpa," Aubrey asked, walking up behind Jack, "What's the last thing that you remember happening?"

"Hm… I believe that Mercy had brought me something to eat. I must have fallen asleep."

"Um, not exactly. You see-"

"Holy shit, is that thing still alive?" Lock's exclamation distracted everyone as he pointed his sword at the monster brain, which had apparently awoken from its lightning induced nap, and was now growling and glaring at Lock and Shock, who had it backed into a corner.

"What in the world is that?"

"That is what's been controlling your body for the past two months." Jack said. "Oogie has somehow convinced Mercy that we are the bad guys, and she poisoned you with some of Sally's Deadly Nightshade soup."

"Hmph. Just like her mother, that one." Doctor Finklestein grumbled. "You say that I haven't been in my own body for two months?"

"Nearly. It's almost Christmas." Lock said, keeping a wary eye on the brain. "Oogie's been using you to build his monsters, and he's taken over Halloween Town with them."

"This thing also had you make everyone booby trap the town." Shock said, poking it with the end of her hat. It hissed at her.

"I believe we have a lot to catch up on, Jack." Doctor Finklestein said solemnly. "For now, though… Lock, if you would."

Lock grinned evilly down at the brain, which suddenly seemed to realize it was in trouble.

"Ugh, Lock, that's really nasty." Aubrey said, going over toward the window.

"Burnt brain. Yum." Shock said, peering over Lock's shoulder, a hand over her nose. "What's it doing?"

The now liquefied brain was oozing into a new shape, darkening to a familiar, grass green color.

"Oh no…" Jack said, striding over.

"That's one of the holiday doors." Lock said as the green ooze solidified into a solid, wooden shamrock.

"It's just as I feared." Jack murmured. "Oogie has stolen the Holiday World doors."

"It's part of his plan." Aubrey said from the window. "Before Oogie trapped me, he told me that he was planning to become the… the Seven Holidays King, or something."

"That… is bad." Shock concluded.

"If Oogie Boogie has stolen the holiday doors, I think it's safe to say he's also tried to take over the other Holiday Worlds." Doctor Finklestein said. "What other doors have you found?"

"Um, I hate to interrupt, but I think we have a problem back in town." Aubrey said, pointing out the window. Jack ran over.

Several citizens were running in the opposite direction of the Pumpkin Patch. "Oh no…" Jack groaned. "Doctor, we'll have to discuss this later." He said. "I'm afraid Oogie has struck again."

SC: Okay, done. Sorry I didn't make it by the first, but when the internet goes out… unforeseen circumstances are annoying. :/ Reviews are appreciated!

Ja ne

SpontaneousCombustion


	10. Chapter 10

SC: Woo! Double digit chapter! Also, I love Behemoth. He's so cute. He's like a big kid… granted, with an ax in his skull.

Disclaimer: Same old, same old. You guys know the drill.

Chapter 10

Warning: Possessed Pumpkins (Not for use in Carriage Transformations)

"What's going on? What's happened?" Jack demanded, pushing through the crowd to see a sobbing Behemoth.

"Behemoth, what's wrong? Did something happen to the pumpkin patch?" Aubrey asked, kneeling down next to him. He nodded, still sniffling.

"He said something about ghosts in the pumpkins." Drake said, looking over at Shock and Lock.

"Ghosts…"

"In the pumpkins?" The two of them repeated, looking at each other, confused

"Oogie's doing, no doubt." Jack muttered. "Let's go- don't worry, Behemoth, we'll get your pumpkin patch back."

"Thank you, Jack." Behemoth sniffled. Jack smiled and patted the hulking man's shoulder before storming toward the pumpkin patch.

"I don't understand. If Oogie had Doctor Finklestein making his monsters, shouldn't they be losing strength and numbers?" Aubrey asked as they walked through the gate.

"They might be making themselves at this point." Lock muttered, kicking the gate shut behind them.

"There's a lovely thought." Shock said, looking around. "I don't see any ghosts."

Aubrey took a few more steps forward. "Well, he said 'in the pumpkins,' so maybe-" She cut off with a shriek as the pumpkin near her feet exploded, an Oogie ghost slashing at the winged girl and leaving a long gash on her stomach. Lock stabbed through it and it vanished in a puff of smoke.

"That's just freaky." Shock said as another pumpkin grew in the decimated one's place in a matter of seconds.

"And people say that the _dark_ arts are the freaky stuff." Lock muttered. "Because that's some powerful white magic."

"Barrel." Aubrey sighed. "Damn it. Now what?"

Jack paused, then smiled. "Hm… maybe… stand back, you three." Lock, Shock, and Aubrey looked at each other strangely, but did as Jack said. Stepping up to the row of pumpkins, Jack let out his best Pumpkin King shriek. The pumpkins burst, the ghosts shooting out and up, startled out of their safe hiding places.

"All right Jack!" Lock cackled, tossing a fireball through one. It shriveled into the flame, disappearing into a puff of smoke. The other two flew away before they met the same fate.

"Beat 'em at their own game." Shock smirked. "Good idea, Jack."

He took the complement with a nod, but was quickly serious again. "Let's get moving."

As they went deeper into the pumpkin patch, Aubrey let out a quiet noise of pain, putting a hand on her head. Shock turned to look at her. "You all right?"

"Yeah. All the Oogie magic in this place is giving me a migraine, that's all." The winged girl muttered.

"Not exactly pleasant, is it?" Shock sighed. "Once we get Barrel back, he can clear all this mess out." Aubrey nodded, hopping off the ledge they'd just reached.

"Yuh-uh." Lock said, throwing an arm out in front of the two girls. "Bridge is out." The stone bridge that normally crossed the glowing green river had been blown to smithereens, leaving no way across.

That is, if you couldn't fly. "You say that like it's a serious roadblock." Shock said, leaning on her elbows on her broom, which was levitating at waist height. Aubrey flared her wings out slightly giving her fiancé a 'hello, duh' look.

Lock returned their patronizing looks with a 'not amused' look of his own, picked up a good sized rock, and tossed it over the bridge. There was a loud roar of rushing water, and the river rose up to pluck the stone out of the air, dragging it into the depths.

Shock's broom disappeared with a 'pop!' and Aubrey crossed her arms. "Well, that's… that's a roadblock." She muttered.

"You think?" Lock asked sarcastically. "Come on. There's got to be another way around." The group turned around to find an alternate route, stopping as the caterwauling warning siren filled the air, followed by the sound of a microphone turning on.

"_Hello? Testing, testing. One, two, three. Am I on?_"

"Oogie." Lock and Shock snarled simultaneously.

"Let's keep moving, we don't have any time to waste." Jack said, pushing the two forward along the vine strewn path. The four weaved their way in and out of the pumpkins as Oogie's voice radiated through the patch.

The bogeyman cleared his throat. "_Denizens of Oogie Town!" _Jack's fists clenched at the name. _"Jack has returned! According to the reports,_" Oogie chuckled darkly, "_he's enjoying our dangerous Oogie Town so much he's screaming in horror! Rejoice! This is all thanks to your efforts!_" He cackled loudly and in malicious glee.

"Doesn't he just love the sound of his own voice." Lock growled.

"Over here, I think I found a place we can cross!" Shock called, spotting a narrowing of the river. Lock grabbed a stone from near his feet and chunked it over. The river remained as it was.

"Good job, Shock." Jack said before throwing out the Soul Robber. It latched onto a gnarled tree, allowing the skeleton to swing over. Aubrey went after him, with Lock and Shock on the witch's broom behind her.

"Well, there's one obstacle behind us." Aubrey said, looking over her shoulder.

Lock sliced a bomb spitting statue apart at the base. "Yeah, only god knows how many more to go." The ground shook and rumbled as the words left his mouth. He sighed. "Of course."

The dead ground split and cracked, a large bony hand shooting out of it. Following the hand came a long, thick arm, and it was- unfortunately- attached to a very angry looking, club-wielding ogre.

Which barely had time to roar at the four before it was simultaneously struck by three very large bolts of lightning. Jack, Aubrey, and Lock turned to look at Shock, who pushed a stray hair back under her hat. "I don't have time for this bullshit." She muttered, storming past them. "Are you coming or not?"

"First thing I'm telling Barrel when we get him back is to NEVER break up with Shock." Lock muttered. Aubrey and Jack both nodded, carefully following the angry witch.

After hopping the river twice more- once where it attempted to grab Shock as she flew over, only to be spelled into submission- they reached a new obstacle: a large, thick root had grown over the path. At this point, though, it wasn't much of an obstacle, and they all just climbed or flew over.

However, once they reached the other side, it was a different story. "Aah!" Aubrey let out a cry of surprise as she fell to the ground, her wings suddenly disappearing in a wisp of white smoke. Shock's broom splintered beneath her, sending her plummeting as well, though this time Jack was there to catch her.

"What just happened?" The witch asked, looking at the shattered remains of her broomstick.

"You all right?" Lock asked, helping Aubrey up.

She nodded warily, looking over her shoulder. "I- I think so. But my wings…"

"Don't worry," a familiar voice said, making them all look up, "It's just a 'grounded' spell. They're not gone for good."

"Barrel!" The fourth member of the trick-or-treaters was sitting atop another giant root a few feet away, looking as morose as any of them had seen him in quite some time.

"It's about time you showed up." He said, swinging his leg down so both dangled off the front of the root. "I was beginning to think you couldn't get past the pumpkins. Keep on going like this, and you'll never make it through the maze in time."

"In time for what?" Jack asked, though he had a feeling he wouldn't like the answer.

"To stop the monsters from destroying the big pumpkin head."

Aubrey's eyes widened. "But that keeps the entire pumpkin patch growing!"

"Then I guess," He said, standing up, "you'd better hurry." With a flash of light, Barrel disappeared.

"I curse the day that he learned to teleport." Lock growled. "Now what do we do?"

"We'll have to get through the rest of the pumpkin patch, and Barrel's 'maze' as quickly as possible." Jack muttered. "We can't let them destroy the pumpkin head."

"What about Barrel? How do we get him to stand still long enough to let Aubrey break the contract?" Shock asked.

"We'll have to get to that when it comes." Jack said. They all nodded. Shock looked over at Aubrey, who was staring at the place Barrel had disappeared from.

"Aubrey." The white-haired girl looked over at the witch. "About Barrel's contract mark. It's-"

"On his forehead. I know." Aubrey muttered. "I saw it."

Shock looked startled. "What?"

"I know, it surprised me, too. But when I looked at Barrel… I could see it, clear as day. I think the key's getting stronger."

Many twists, turns, and monsters later, the group had finally reached the end of Barrel's labyrinth. "Behemoth is going to _kill_ Barrel when this is over. Look at what he did to this place." Lock muttered, looking at the many, _many_ obviously displaced pumpkins lying around the clearing.

Aubrey shivered as they stepped into the clearing before the giant Jack'o'Lantern, rubbing her arms. "This place _reeks _of Oogie's magic." Lock put an arm around her.

"We'll be out of here soon, Aubs."

"I wouldn't count on that." Barrel called, standing atop the Pumpkin Head and looking down at the group morosely. "Jack still has to beat me in order for you all to leave."

"Me?" Jack questioned. "Why me?"

"There's a barrier set up around any entrance to the Pumpkin Head. You're the only one its going to allow through, Jack. And I wouldn't try breaking it, Shock. It's white magic. We all know how you react to that." He said quickly, before Shock could work up a dispelling charm. "See you inside, Jack." He said, hopping back down into the gourd.

"Now what?" Shock groaned. "Without Aubrey able to get inside, we can't break Barrel's contract."

"Which is what Oogie is counting on." Jack murmured.

Lock growled. "Damn it! What do we do now?"

Aubrey smiled slightly, eyes running over the barrier shimmering around the Pumpkin Head. "Why don't we see how smart that barrier actually is?"

_What's taking them so long?_ Barrel asked himself as he waited in the belly of the Pumpkin Head. He just wanted to get this over with, one way or another. The sound of screaming ghosts and wailing skeletons made him look up. He sighed as he heard Jack's voice, as well as the whip of the Soul Robber. He held out a hand, summoning the Bone-sledge and resting it on his shoulder as he waited for the skeleton to make it down to his level.

Finally, Jack dropped through a hole in the ceiling, straightening up and scanning the room until his eye-sockets fell on Barrel. "It's about time you showed up Jack. And alone, too."

"It's not as though I had a choice."

"Right." Barrel said, slipping his free hand into his pocket and pulling out a cold, metal sphere. Dark energy radiated off of it, evaporating into smoke as Barrel crushed it. Jack looked up as the hole he'd dropped through sealed behind him.

"Barrel, what have you done?" He demanded.

"Made it so that neither of us can leave here without one of us dying." Barrel said listlessly. The white magic user frowned as Jack began to chuckle- not exactly the reaction he was expecting. "What are you laughing at?"

Jack's chuckled died, and he smirked at Barrel. "Oh, nothing." The skeleton said. Barrel frowned- Jack's voice had begun getting lighter and more feminine. "Just that Shock was right- Oogie is _so_ predictable." As Jack spoke, he seemed to shimmer and fade away, revealing Aubrey standing there. "And now that you can't teleport away, we're going to have a fair fight."

Barrel's eyes widened, and then he glared at her. "Do you have _any _idea what you've done? Aubrey, I'm going to have to kill you!"

"Or you can just stand still and let me take care of that mark on your forehead." She suggested, taking a step toward him. Barrel took a step back, hefting the Bone-sledge off of his shoulder and taking a better grip on it. Aubrey sighed, holding her hand out. The Morning Star appeared in it. "Fine, we'll do it your way." She said, throwing the scythe's blade at him. Barrel teleported out of the way, reappearing to her left and swinging his weapon at her. Aubrey leapt out of the way, letting it hit the barrier surrounding the sides of the room. "Barrel, stop making this difficult and hold still!"

"I can't, what don't you get about that?" He demanded, disappearing as she reached for him. Aubrey dodged as he reappeared above her, rolling out of the way and landing on her knees.

"Of course. Oogie." She growled, standing up and looking around the room. Barrel had vanished again, and didn't seem to want to reappear. Aubrey stepped into the middle of the room, still looking around warily. "You know, Barrel, Shock's been right about a lot of things lately." She said to the empty room, her hand tightening around her scythe's handle. "Oogie isn't the only one getting predictable." She quickly turned, lifting the Morningstar and catching the handle of Barrel's hammer, twisting the blade and tossing it away before pressing her hand against the mark on Barrel's forehead. This time, the dark magic barely stung her fingers before the key's magic forced it out of her body and Barrel's.

The shockwave from the contract breaking shattered the barrier surrounding the room like glass, as well as throwing the two across the small space. Barrel managed to scramble up first, running across the room and scooping Aubrey up into a hug. Aubrey laughed. "Barrel!"

"You did it, you did it, I would kiss you but Lock would kill me, but you did it!" He laughed, setting her down. "Let's get out of here."

"Gladly. But, uh, you have some work to do." She said as they reappeared outside the Pumpkin Head.

"Yeah, I know mmf!" Barrel fell back onto his butt as Shock tackled him with a kiss.

Jack patted Aubrey's shoulder. "Good job, Aubrey."

Aubrey grinned, then laughed a little as she found herself swooped up into another hug, this time by a very happy Shock. "Shock! Geez, all right! I'm glad I could help, but please put me down before I get sick."

The witch grinned, putting her down. "Sorry." She grinned.

"You're creepy when you're happy." Lock said, crossing his arms. Shock rolled her eyes, punching his arm. "Ah, sweet normalcy… ow."

Barrel laughed. "All right, let's just get out of here. After I fix this place up, anyway."

"Yeah, you better, or Behemoth is gonna kill you." Aubrey said. Barrel grimaced, obviously picturing what Behemoth could do with that ax in his head.

"Why don't I just get on that…" He muttered, raising a hand and muttering several spells under his breath while his friends laughed.

Deep below Halloween Town's streets, Oogie Boogie roared with rage. "How DARE SHE!" He roared, stomping around his roulette wheel. "My contracts, all gone! I have no power over those brats anymore." He muttered. "And without them runnin' around up there, I don't have anyone to keep the Town as is… hmm…" He looked up as a stray crow that had somehow found its way into the casino 'cawwed' above his head. Oogie grinned. "Hehehe… that'll work…" He turned back toward the table in the middle of the roulette wheel, where a small, shining gold sliver of light sat. "Mercy!"

The redheaded Skellington came down the staircase. "Yes?"

"I've got a job for you, dollface…"

SC: Wee, more updates! I'm getting a lot done, with Christmas over and done with now. Anyway, read and review please! I'll try and get a new update out before I have to go back to school on the fifth.

Have a happy New Year!

SpontaneousCombustion


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